Eight cannabis factories uncovered

As National Tackling Drugs Week continues, Dorset Police has announced that in the past year, eight cannabis factories have been found at locations in Bournemouth, Poole, Christchurch and Blandford.

One thousand cannabis plants, hydroponics equipment (method of growing plants without soil) and extractor fan units were found – most of which were in residential properties that had been converted for large scale production of cannabis.

Assistant Chief Constable Mike Glanville said: “Community intelligence is hugely important to us and we rely heavily on intelligence provided by the public.

“It’s vital that people living in both rural and urban areas, if they do suspect anything, that they tell us or Crimestoppers about their concerns.

“That piece of information could fit into a bigger picture which can help us in our investigations.”

One person who wished she had called the police earlier was 35-year-old Nadia from Alder Hills, Poole who lives in a semi-detached house with her husband.

She has spent more than £400 on call-outs to her house after it began to smell dank and mouldy as a result of hundreds of cannabis plants being grown, which they were unaware of, next door.

New neighbours moved into the semi-detached house in autumn 2008 and Nadia said they seemed normal: “He was Chinese, spoke very good English, was well dressed and said he was an entrepreneur from Switzerland who was starting a new hairdressing business in Bournemouth and that he was relocating his elderly parents to the UK to be near him. The only thing that was strange was that he asked about the street and house – he wanted to know if it was really quiet and he was quite inquisitive about comings and goings.

“Soon after they moved in, we began to hear lots of banging and drilling, which sounded at first as though they were putting up shelves. But then there were even more strange sounds, like washing machine pipes being fitted and major structural changes. It did stop eventually and we didn’t hear from them for ages.

“But I noticed that no one was ever visiting the property or seen outside, the curtains never moved or lights were never on, the rubbish bins were not put out and I never heard anybody talking or TV or radio.

“I still had no idea that it could be a cannabis factory inside.”

However, Nadia and her husband soon started experiencing structural problems with their own home.

She continued: “At first we thought we had blocked drains or another plumbing problem as there was a horrendous damp, rotting, musty smell developing. But then we went up into the loft and discovered that the roof was saturated – all our books and electrical equipment seemed to be ruined. We tried renting out an industrial dehumidifier and enlisted the help from handymen to help get rid of the smell but none of this really worked.

“One day we lit the wood burning stove and a few minutes later, a strange man frantically knocked on the door and told us to put it out. I later found out that this man was living in the property, looking after the cannabis plants.

“Of course, he had no idea who the Chinese man was, when I asked. We didn’t realise that the smoke from our fire was being sucked out of our chimney and directly into their industrial vacuum pipes that were ventilating the cannabis plants.

“At one point, I heard lots of crashing and banging coming from the house and then noticed some people taking out large parcels out into a van and two cars. I called the landlord to warn him of all the strange activity next door. By this point, my husband actually suspected it was a cannabis factory but I dismissed this immediately. The landlord went around the next day and found that the house had been completely trashed and some equipment was left behind. I understand more than 100 cannabis plants were also found. He then called the police to investigate.”

Nadia now wishes she had called the police a lot earlier: “If I had known, I could’ve told police a lot earlier and those people may have seen the justice they deserve. I have spent the past six months quite worried about it all and it all could’ve stopped, if I had just made one call – even to Crimestoppers.”

She also has a message to landlords: “You really must keep an eye on your property, don’t leave it too long before you call and visit the property now and again. It’s probably a good idea to build up a friendly relationship between tenants and landlords.”

Police are still looking for a Chinese man in connection with the incident.

ACC Glanville continued: “We will act on any information provided, I can reassure you that every piece of information is important to us and that we will respond to local concerns.

“In the past, we’ve had members of the public ring in and let us know about strange smells, people visiting homes at strange times of the day or other suspicious activity going on in their street, and this all helps us to investigate successfully.

“One individual can make a massive difference and we’ve seen that time and time again and some of our biggest successes have been as a result of one single piece of information.

“If people do see things that do seem out of place, then please call us or report the activity to Crimestoppers anonymously.”

There are a huge range of services working together to tackle drugs and change lives in your community.

For more information on how to contact services, visit "www.dorset.police.uk"