Landlords warned of tenant drug farm risk
Saturday 31st January 2009, 10:12AM GMT.
Police have warned landlords along the north Shropshire border to be on the lookout for tenants who rent rural properties to use as cannabis farms.
It comes after a spate of suspected drug farms were uncovered in the area.
In the latest incident police discovered a suspected cannabis factory in a property at a village near Whitchurch, this week.
They say anyone renting out property should take steps to know who they are dealing with and what the premises will be used for or potentially face eye-watering repair bills or even find themselves at the centre of an organised international crime ring and a police probe.
“Cannabis farms are not just cases of a few local people making some money on the side,” warned Sergeant Adam Butt, of Cheshire Police.”This is organised crime with a turnover of millions of pounds and operated by gangs who are often based in the Far East.
“Basically, they will wreck the property and these criminals do not care about that, they only care about making money.”
He added that landlords ought to be suspicious if people offer to pay more in rent than the market value or if they want to pay in cash.
“If they ask the landlord how often he intends to visit the property, that should be another warning signal,” he added.
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