Newport houses part of £3.5m cannabis haul

11:50am Wednesday 27th February 2013 in News

£3.5m worth of cannabis plants found in Newport £3.5m worth of cannabis plants found in Newport

FOUR Newport addresses were raided as part of an operation that uncovered £3.5 million worth of cannabis plants.

Officers went to three locations in the Stow Hill area yesterday at first light as part of Operation Pristina, led by South Wales Police.

The force said the addresses were linked to the two-and-a-half-year operation, which ended yesterday with a total haul of 3,500 cannabis plants worth £3.5 million, and £400,000 in cash.

The fourth Newport address raided by South Wales Police was in Old Hill, on February 9.

The crackdown targeted drug crime in Wales and England – another seven addresses were searched in Cardiff, Bath and Bristol yesterday, bringing the total to 26 since 2010.

Seven men and one woman were arrested as South Wales Police officers were joined by colleagues from Gwent Police, Avon and Somerset Police, and staff from the UK Border Agency, fire and ambulance services.

A large cannabis factory found on the Eastgate Business Park, in Cardiff, by some of the 130 officers deployed was dismantled.

DI Paul Latham said: “During the course of this operation we have successfully disrupted many of those who have been suspected of dealing in drugs.

“They are a source of misery andthe message is simple – drugs will not be tolerated.”

Assets, suspected of being funded by criminal activities, were also seized under the Proceeds of Crime Act and will nowbe subject to a financial investigation.

Comments(12)

P C Neilson says...
12:38pm Wed 27 Feb 13

As long as there is a war on drugs, there will be a black market for it. This approach has had many years to show any evidence for any misery ending effects. Build more prisons and keep a chunk of tax payers money to fund the war on drugs, because that's what it boils down to.

I am anti drugs by the way, (my body my choice ) but anyone with half a brain can see that people like getting high, and prohibition doesn't work.

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welshmen says...
2:22pm Wed 27 Feb 13

The Law in all western Countries is to stop the drugs trade in our society, well for all the effort put in and the Billions in cost it sadly hasn't stopped, time to Legalise all drugs and create SAFE outlets that will see the profits go to create rehab center's, at present there aren't many, i don't take illegal drugs only prescribed , if illegal drugs were made legal in my opinion, the urge to take would drop.

If we don't then we need to bring back Corporal punishment and execute the importers growers and the sellers, time to end pussyfooting and get serious....illegal drugs supports international terrorism and crime gangs....

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KarmaSuitsYa says...
2:35pm Wed 27 Feb 13

How the police can justify the expense of pursuing this pointless and vindictive endeavour when, because of budgetary cutbacks, their frontline and support services are demonstrably insufficcient, just beggars belief.

To the Police - GIVE IT UP!!! You're not going to win. Concentrate instead on the hard drugs that actually do destroy lives, and stop wasting money on frivolous political operations.

Thanks

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Owen Richards says...
5:18pm Wed 27 Feb 13

We need to stop this stupid and unwinnable war against cannabis. It is causing far more harm to our communities than it prevents. If we had a properly regulated system of production and supply we'd have no more illegal and dangerous cannabis farms causing fires. Instead we'd have thousands of new jobs. We'd have no more dealers on the streets. Cannabis would be available to adults only through licensed outlets and we'd have some control over the THC and CBD content.

Doctors would be able to prescribe one of the most effective medicines that has no serious side effects at all. At the moment the government has given GW Pharmaceuticals an illegal monopoly on cannabis so they make millions out of a medicine that you can grow in your greenhouse for virtually nothing.

If we introduced a legally regulated system we would solve nearly all the problems around cannabis. Science proves how much safer it is than tobacco, alcohol, prescription medicines and all other recreational drugs. If anyone does have a problem with it they could get help without having to confess to a crime.

CLEAR published independent, expert research last year which shows that a tax and regulate policy on cannabis would produce a net gain to the UK economy of up to £9.3 billion per annum.

It is a scandal that our government, our judges, our courts, our police and our newspapers keep misleading us about cannabis. Find out the truth for yourself and wake up to the lies you have been told.

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the-dragons says...
5:53pm Wed 27 Feb 13

So better stock up then looks like there's guna be a shortage

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Limestonecowboy says...
6:25pm Wed 27 Feb 13

Keep up the war on this trade & crush the growers as well as the weed. Legalise what happens then move onto harder drugs great idea!

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morgansgoat says...
6:33pm Wed 27 Feb 13

£3.5 million, that's £700,000 in potential tax revenue. Oh well.

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Owen Richards says...
6:57pm Wed 27 Feb 13

Limestonecowboy wrote:
Keep up the war on this trade & crush the growers as well as the weed. Legalise what happens then move onto harder drugs great idea!
That will result in the price of cannabis rising even higher and those involved in the trade being prepared to use more violence to protect their turf. It is the policy of fools who fail to learn from history.

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Welshman76 says...
7:52pm Wed 27 Feb 13

Tobacco is legal yet there is a black market for that! Why would drugs be any different?

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Llanmartinangel says...
10:44pm Wed 27 Feb 13

You could legalise all drugs and let Darwinism take its course as all the users die off.

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Owen Richards says...
8:00am Thu 28 Feb 13

Welshman76 wrote:
Tobacco is legal yet there is a black market for that! Why would drugs be any different?
Legal regulation doesn't eliminate black markets but it minimises the harm caused by them. There's not much human trafficking, destruction of rental property and gun violence involved in the illicit tobacco trade. Imagine what it would be like if tobacco was banned like cannabis is.

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County says...
5:34pm Thu 28 Feb 13

Funny how drugs that help you get over illness are illegal yet ones that make you ill are legal.

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