ianstone
08-17-2010, 02:39 PM
Police discover 20 large-scale cannabis factories in Britain every day - so are we now a drugs EXPORTER?
By James Slack (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/search.html?s=y&authornamef=James+Slack)
Last updated at 7:21 PM on 17th August 2010
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Criminal gangs are now producing so much cannabis in Britain’s suburban streets that there is a ‘market for export’.
Police say the gangs have taken over cinemas, houses, pubs, banks and shops left empty because of the recession.
Almost 7,000 cannabis factories were discovered last year - more than double the number found two years ago.
Incredibly, a report by chief constables says the gangs are growing so much cannabis that - for the first time - there is enough to start selling the drug overseas.
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2010/08/17/article-1303789-0158508700000578-97_468x286.jpg Incredibly, a report by chief constables says the gangs are growing so much cannabis that - for the first time - there is enough to start selling the drug overseas
Previously, the UK relied on smuggled supplies of the illegal drug, from countries such as Holland and Morocco, because homegrown crops did not meet demand.id.
The study, by the Association of Chief Police Officers, offers a disturbing insight into how cannabis farms have sprung up across the UK.
Criminals are employing children to grow the drug with powerful heat lamps, and also to break into farms run by rival gangs
They are often run by immigrant gangs from the Far East, though there is evidence they are now joining forces with home-grown criminals.
They are employing children to grow the drug with powerful heat lamps, and also to break into farms run by rival gangs.
The properties are being ‘booby-trapped’ - with window frames wired to the electricity mains.
There are now almost 20 commercial cannabis factories being found by police every day, taking the total for 2009/10 to 6,886 - more than double the 3,032 discovered two years ago.
It is more than eight times the annual average between 2004 and 2007.
More than 1.3million plants worth an estimated £150million were recovered in the last two years.
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2010/08/17/article-1303789-043EDEBF000005DC-305_468x286.jpg
More than 1.3million plants worth an estimated £150million were recovered in the last two years
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2010/08/17/article-1303789-0912A12A000005DC-469_468x286.jpg Leafy suburb: Police seize a large haul of cannabis earlier this year in Purley, South London. Last year alone, police seized almost 750,000 plants with an estimated yield of £85million
Last year alone, police seized almost 750,000 plants with an estimated yield of £85million, compared with more than 500,000 plants worth £65million the year before.
‘There is now a market for exportation’ the police chiefs warn, though they are yet to gather intelligence this is happening.
The highest number of factories - 896 - were found in the West Yorkshire force area.
The largest factory found was in an industrial unit in Haddenham, Cambridgeshire, where more than 7,600 plants were recovered with an estimated yield of £2.5million, the report said.
Acpo also found the premises used for cannabis cultivation were becoming more varied and included disused industrial buildings, former pubs, cinemas, nightclubs, hotels, print works and even banks. Officers blamed this on the recession.
The report, called the UK National Problem Profile: Commercial Cultivation of Cannabis, also found that criminals involved in the cannabis farms were involved in crimes such as counterfeiting currency and DVDs, money laundering, immigration crime, firearms, blackmail, prostitution, theft and people trafficking.
Reports of factories being ‘taxed’ by other criminals have led to criminals arming themselves with machetes, sawn-off shotguns and stun guns, Acpo said.
More discreet weapons, including a mobile phone and a torch with electrodes on the top which caused shock when in contact with skin, were also found.
Some forces also reported that some factories featured booby traps.
The report says: ‘Law enforcement have witnessed attempts to electrify window frames and door knobs, a home-made device which would detonate a shot gun cartridge and a window criss-crossed with bare wire attached to a standard three-pin plug.’
In another case, an external side gate at a factory was wired directly to the mains.
‘Any person touching the handle or jumping over the gate could have been severely injured or killed,’ the report said.
Commander Allan Gibson, the Acpo lead on cannabis, said: ‘The level of publicity around cannabis since its reclassification in 2008 has meant that more members of the community are now reporting any unusual signs of habitation in buildings and houses, which is leading to more detections.’
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1303789/Police-finding-20-large-scale-cannabis-factories-Britain-EVERY-DAY.html#ixzz0wtEXnEOj
By James Slack (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/search.html?s=y&authornamef=James+Slack)
Last updated at 7:21 PM on 17th August 2010
Comments (69) (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1303789/Police-finding-20-large-scale-cannabis-factories-Britain-EVERY-DAY.html#comments)
Add to My Stories (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1303789/Police-finding-20-large-scale-cannabis-factories-Britain-EVERY-DAY.html)
Criminal gangs are now producing so much cannabis in Britain’s suburban streets that there is a ‘market for export’.
Police say the gangs have taken over cinemas, houses, pubs, banks and shops left empty because of the recession.
Almost 7,000 cannabis factories were discovered last year - more than double the number found two years ago.
Incredibly, a report by chief constables says the gangs are growing so much cannabis that - for the first time - there is enough to start selling the drug overseas.
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2010/08/17/article-1303789-0158508700000578-97_468x286.jpg Incredibly, a report by chief constables says the gangs are growing so much cannabis that - for the first time - there is enough to start selling the drug overseas
Previously, the UK relied on smuggled supplies of the illegal drug, from countries such as Holland and Morocco, because homegrown crops did not meet demand.id.
The study, by the Association of Chief Police Officers, offers a disturbing insight into how cannabis farms have sprung up across the UK.
Criminals are employing children to grow the drug with powerful heat lamps, and also to break into farms run by rival gangs
They are often run by immigrant gangs from the Far East, though there is evidence they are now joining forces with home-grown criminals.
They are employing children to grow the drug with powerful heat lamps, and also to break into farms run by rival gangs.
The properties are being ‘booby-trapped’ - with window frames wired to the electricity mains.
There are now almost 20 commercial cannabis factories being found by police every day, taking the total for 2009/10 to 6,886 - more than double the 3,032 discovered two years ago.
It is more than eight times the annual average between 2004 and 2007.
More than 1.3million plants worth an estimated £150million were recovered in the last two years.
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2010/08/17/article-1303789-043EDEBF000005DC-305_468x286.jpg
More than 1.3million plants worth an estimated £150million were recovered in the last two years
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2010/08/17/article-1303789-0912A12A000005DC-469_468x286.jpg Leafy suburb: Police seize a large haul of cannabis earlier this year in Purley, South London. Last year alone, police seized almost 750,000 plants with an estimated yield of £85million
Last year alone, police seized almost 750,000 plants with an estimated yield of £85million, compared with more than 500,000 plants worth £65million the year before.
‘There is now a market for exportation’ the police chiefs warn, though they are yet to gather intelligence this is happening.
The highest number of factories - 896 - were found in the West Yorkshire force area.
The largest factory found was in an industrial unit in Haddenham, Cambridgeshire, where more than 7,600 plants were recovered with an estimated yield of £2.5million, the report said.
Acpo also found the premises used for cannabis cultivation were becoming more varied and included disused industrial buildings, former pubs, cinemas, nightclubs, hotels, print works and even banks. Officers blamed this on the recession.
The report, called the UK National Problem Profile: Commercial Cultivation of Cannabis, also found that criminals involved in the cannabis farms were involved in crimes such as counterfeiting currency and DVDs, money laundering, immigration crime, firearms, blackmail, prostitution, theft and people trafficking.
Reports of factories being ‘taxed’ by other criminals have led to criminals arming themselves with machetes, sawn-off shotguns and stun guns, Acpo said.
More discreet weapons, including a mobile phone and a torch with electrodes on the top which caused shock when in contact with skin, were also found.
Some forces also reported that some factories featured booby traps.
The report says: ‘Law enforcement have witnessed attempts to electrify window frames and door knobs, a home-made device which would detonate a shot gun cartridge and a window criss-crossed with bare wire attached to a standard three-pin plug.’
In another case, an external side gate at a factory was wired directly to the mains.
‘Any person touching the handle or jumping over the gate could have been severely injured or killed,’ the report said.
Commander Allan Gibson, the Acpo lead on cannabis, said: ‘The level of publicity around cannabis since its reclassification in 2008 has meant that more members of the community are now reporting any unusual signs of habitation in buildings and houses, which is leading to more detections.’
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1303789/Police-finding-20-large-scale-cannabis-factories-Britain-EVERY-DAY.html#ixzz0wtEXnEOj