Cannabis factory found near Broseley
Tuesday 26th July 2011, 3:50PM BST.
A cannabis factory growing plants potentially worth thousands of pounds has been discovered by police in a farm building near Broseley.
About 50 plants were seized by officers, along with a large quantity of cannabis seeds and associated equipment in last night’s raid.
Police went to the location in Benthall just after 7pm.
A 33-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of cultivating cannabis plants in the operation, which involved about seven police officers.
The arrested man was today in custody at Shrewsbury Police Station for questioning. It has not been disclosed whether he is local to the area.
Richard Ewels, a West Mercia Police spokesman said today: “We went to an address in the Benthall area and discovered a cannabis growing environment in a farm building. A man was arrested and the plants, seeds and various items of equipment were seized.
“This is the latest in a series of successes by police in Shropshire relating to cannabis cultivation.
“We would urge members of the public to report any suspicious activity which they think might be related to drugs.
“Tackling illegal drugs and associated crimes remains a top priority for the police in Shropshire and indeed the whole of the West Mercia force area.
“We receive tremendous support and help from the public and we will always act in confidence on any information. In recent months we have carried out a number of warrants under the Misuse of Drugs Act, charged offenders and put them before the courts.”
Anyone with information on drugs offences or possible offenders can call West Mercia Police on 0300 333 3000, or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
Most Commented
- Shropshire Council will face £8m redundancy bill
- Clampdown on Shrewsbury chuggers
- Bishop's gay marriage views do nothing to support bible teachings
- Letter: Alcohol price plans annoy me
- Letter: Angered by close encounter of the furred kind
- Letter: No sense in overseas job adverts
- Planners ordered to stay on Newport visit bus
Shropshire Star on Twitter
Keep updated with the latest breaking news and content on our Twitter feed.
Lifestyle
Interactive Dining Out map
Hundreds of reviews by the Shropshire Star and Express & Star's teams to help you decide where to eat.
Entertainment
All the film reviews
Before you plan a trip to the pictures, get our critics' verdicts on all the latest movie releases.
OUR NEW APP
Get the new Shropshire Star app
Download the Shropshire Star’s new app to your iPad or iPhone to get one week of access to our digital newspapers absolutely FREE.
shropshirestar.com
Popular sections
Useful links
Why don’t we try taking a completely new approach to this problem? At least six million people in Britain use cannabis regularly and whatever we do we’re not going to stop them. We waste billions every year on police, court and prison resources when a large proportion of society uses cannabis without any problem at all. In fact, the only real problem with cannabis is that it’s illegal. The risks to health are very small – much, much less than alcohol or tobacco. By a recent analysis of mortality, hospital admissions, toxicity and propensity to psychosis, cannabis is nearly 3000 times safer than alcohol. Why not introduce a tax and regulate system and realise the benefits? That way we’d have a properly regulated supply chain with no criminals involved, no theft of electricity, no human trafficking, no destruction of property and disruption of neighbourhoods. Then there would be some control over this huge market. There would be thousands of new jobs, sales would be from licensed outlets to adults only with guaranteed quality and safety. Then our police could start going after some real wrongdoing instead of trying to fight a crime that exists only because of a misguided government policy.
Report abuse
What a shame! :(
Report abuse
Looks like personal use to me, probably medicinal use as well. Would the police rather this guy visit dealers and criminal gangs to buy cannabis, funding organised crime and/or terrorism in the process, also running the risk of buying harmful ‘tampered with’ cannabis? or would they prefer him to grow it himself and remove the criminal element? This guy should get applauded not arrested.
Report abuse
It’s very doubtful if this was a commercial operation at all. If a personal grower is growing his own supply he will need approximately three or four plants coming to maturity a month, and so most of these fifty plants will be in various stages of growth, from tiny seedlings onwards.
It really is counter productive to bust small personal growers, as by growing for themselves they are avoiding going to black market suppliers, who so often fund serious criminal activities.
For the vast majority of users the cannabis experience is beneficial and productive. It is only when they get ‘busted’ that the experience becomes an unpleasant one.
A regulated and legalised supply of cannabis, would sweep away the problems currently associated with it. The greatest failing of prohibition is that it has completely failed to regulate or control cannabis consumption. Under prohibition there is no age limit to buy cannabis, all the dealer wants to see is the money, so most school-children find it easier to buy cannabis than booze or fags. If we look to Holland we can see how a legalised and regulated cannabis market has led to markedly less use amongst youngsters and a complete splitting of the cannabis market and the supply of heroin etc, this has led a a smaller and constantly shrinking problem with the harder drugs.
Report abuse
So that will cost the tax payer how much now ? Cost of police investigation then housing the criminal in jail before court then the price of the courts then the price of lab testing the cannabis for THC/CBD levels . Then the price of housing the criminal in jail for the next 5 years or so . Or if the government took charge of drugs all this money would be being saved by the government and they would even make a profit of the taxes they could generate from taxing cannabis . But like alcohol all our MPs can think about is ” put the price up ” or the prison sentences up and that has proved to have no effect at all . So lets keep cutting public services and give that cash to the prisons to house people that choose to grow a plant that has never killed a person EVER . 45,000 POUNDS A YEAR TO HOUSE 1 CRIMINAL IN JAIL !! Thats 2 public sector wages a year and how many people do we have in jail ? ALOT !!
Report abuse
There’s no possible way that this can be justified morally. Cannabis isn’t anywhere near as harmful as alcohol, yet the people that don’t want to drink a powerful neurotoxin have to break the law in this country to be able to obtain/grow cannabis. This is simply an infringement on peoples liberty for the sake of it. Pointlessness at the highest order.
Report abuse
I see this paper is just like the Dail Mail where readers comments are concerned . You should posted comments that were put up good and bad and let the general public have their say . And ill say again – If doctors were put incharge of drugs they could lessen the dose every time an addict came and wein them off drugs with professional help and advice or addicts can keep going to dealers and recive dirty contaminated drugs and use dirty needles and when they dont have the cash they can do like they do now and continue to rob people and houses . What ID does a dealer ask for ? ans- a 20 pound note . what ID would a doc ask for ? passport – licence – drug card etc . Drug problem solved .
Report abuse