Published: Thursday, 1st March, 2007 12:00
Is there a drugs factory near you?
By Newsdesk
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Pic by: Dunfermline Press
POLICE are warning people in West Fife to be on the look-out for luxury houses that have been gutted and turned into covert cannabis factories.
Cops are urging landlords and letting agents to be on the alert for plush houses being rented and turned into huge indoor marijuana plantations.
Fife police discovered hundreds of cannabis plants growing in rented properties where electrical circuits had been doctored to support high-powered lamps.
Last week, Strathclyde police announced that several thousand high-grade ‘skunk’ plants, with a yield of up to £3 million, had been seized in an operation targeting house cultivations.
And now Fife Constabulary are warning people to keep an eye out for the makeshift drug factories, which can pose a huge fire risk to surrounding properties.
Police say walls, ceilings and floors are often altered to accommodate the growing rooms and interference with electrical systems to take powerful lighting and fans make the sites a lethal fire hazard.
DCI David Hardie, of Fife Drugs Squad, said, “This is certainly new to Scotland. We have always had cannabis cultivations but not on this scale. And based on the experience in Strathclyde, the earnings from this are massive.
“We need letting agents to be aware of the potential danger and the risk to the property.
“Our advice to letting agents and landlords is to be wary of individuals who approach them looking for short-term leases of three to six months and who are not fussy about furnished accommodation. If it is furnished, they might ask for it to be taken out.
“Another warning would be to make sure they check in the property on a regular basis to see that the terms of the lease are being met.
“Regular undertakings to visit these premises will detect any modifications made to maximise the growing potential of the house. They will use lights and they modify the house to give the best growing conditions.
“They convert the electricity supply for their growing and there is a risk of fire. In a mid-terraced style housing scheme the risk is even greater.”
And the senior detective warned residents to be vigilant for cannabis factories springing up in homes near them.
He said, “Our information is that they tend to favour detached, high-value houses of three bedrooms or more. Yet any type of house could be used.
“From an external perspective, when members of the public see houses where the windows are blacked-out or the curtains drawn all of the time, that could be an indication that the house is being used for this purpose.
“There might be frequent visits to the house from people to make sure the plants are watered and are growing.”
Strathclyde police have made a number or arrests as part of the blitz, named Operation League.
And now experts in property law are warning people renting houses or flats around West Fife to make sure stringent checks are done on new tenants.
Ron Smith, chief executive of the ESPC, said, “With people wanting to rent your property, you should take references and I would think one of them should be a banking reference.
“I would say use a solicitor, do things properly and don’t cut corners. I think I would be highly embarrassed if I rented out a property and it was used as a cannabis factory.
“Take all precautions and document it. If you are a landlord and the police come knocking at your door saying ‘We have found a cannabis factory’, you want to have all the documentation in order. It is the same for any business transaction. Find out as much as you can in the normal course of business about the people with whom you are dealing.”
Crimestoppers Scotland said anyone could give information on the factories anonymously.
Chairman Stewart McCulloch said, “Cannabis cultivation is an increasing problem and must be nipped in the bud. The by-passing of the electricity needed to run the factories causes risk of fire and electrocution. So tell us what you know, not who you are, when calling our anonymous hotline 0800 555 111.”
Fife Fire and Rescue Service said the “growing number of cannabis factories in residential communities” posed a “serious fire risk”.
A spokesperson said, “Cannabis factories bypass electrical metres and fuse boxes so they can get huge amounts of power for lamps and heaters.
“The temperature inside the houses can reach 40 degrees centigrade and rooms may contain chemicals such as fertiliser and pesticides.
“There is also risk to the buildings and neighbouring properties, particularly because they are unoccupied with no means to alert the fire service if a fire occurred.”
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