Herb Fellow
New Member
Police have appealed for public help in stopping remote rural properties being used to cultivate herbal cannabis. A Dumfries and Galloway police spokesman said there had been a nationwide increase in the number of such "factories" in operation. He warned that buildings in isolated parts of the region could be seen as ideal for producing the crop.
Police now want the public to watch out for any "tell-tale" signs a cannabis farm is operating in their area. Acting Det Insp Colin McColm said the force had become aware of an increasing problem. "There have been a number of seizures of herbal cannabis and I think it has been reported nationally the increase in cannabis cultivation throughout Britain," he said.
'TELL-TALE' SIGNS OF HERBAL CANNABIS CULTIVATION
A cannabis plant
Blacked out windows with condensation
People or vehicles turning up at unusual times for short visits
Fertiliser or compost bags left lying around
Bins full despite property being empty
Roof opened up to ventilate the property
Unusual smell coming from building
Large deliveries of lighting equipment
"Speaking to other forces throughout Scotland I think every force has had more than one major cannabis cultivation - so I think it would be naive to think it is not going to affect us in this area as well. "The thing about these cultivations in our area is that they could be stuck in the middle of nowhere."
He said there were a number of signs which the public should watch out for.
"What intelligence suggests is that people lease these houses," said Det Insp McColm.
"In our area, it is a rural area, so it might be an outbuilding that people see cars going up to late at night or somebody turning up to once a week.
"To ventilate the factory they might need to open up the roof - so are there tiles disturbed, or something sticking out of the roof to assist in that?"
Substance misuse officer Pc Scott Jardine said people should also watch out for new residents moving to an area. "Intelligence also tells us that there are people being brought into the country specifically for the role of cultivating cannabis," he said. "These guys are professional at their job, they know what they are doing, they know how to achieve their goals."
However, he said that information from the public could be a vital element in stopping them carrying out that work.
Source: BBC News
Copyright: 2008, BBC News
Contact: BBC
Website: BBC NEWS | Scotland | South of Scotland | Rural cannabis cultivation alert
Police now want the public to watch out for any "tell-tale" signs a cannabis farm is operating in their area. Acting Det Insp Colin McColm said the force had become aware of an increasing problem. "There have been a number of seizures of herbal cannabis and I think it has been reported nationally the increase in cannabis cultivation throughout Britain," he said.
'TELL-TALE' SIGNS OF HERBAL CANNABIS CULTIVATION
A cannabis plant
Blacked out windows with condensation
People or vehicles turning up at unusual times for short visits
Fertiliser or compost bags left lying around
Bins full despite property being empty
Roof opened up to ventilate the property
Unusual smell coming from building
Large deliveries of lighting equipment
"Speaking to other forces throughout Scotland I think every force has had more than one major cannabis cultivation - so I think it would be naive to think it is not going to affect us in this area as well. "The thing about these cultivations in our area is that they could be stuck in the middle of nowhere."
He said there were a number of signs which the public should watch out for.
"What intelligence suggests is that people lease these houses," said Det Insp McColm.
"In our area, it is a rural area, so it might be an outbuilding that people see cars going up to late at night or somebody turning up to once a week.
"To ventilate the factory they might need to open up the roof - so are there tiles disturbed, or something sticking out of the roof to assist in that?"
Substance misuse officer Pc Scott Jardine said people should also watch out for new residents moving to an area. "Intelligence also tells us that there are people being brought into the country specifically for the role of cultivating cannabis," he said. "These guys are professional at their job, they know what they are doing, they know how to achieve their goals."
However, he said that information from the public could be a vital element in stopping them carrying out that work.
Source: BBC News
Copyright: 2008, BBC News
Contact: BBC
Website: BBC NEWS | Scotland | South of Scotland | Rural cannabis cultivation alert
