Public getting the message on the problem of cannabis farms

National Policing Lead for Cannabis-related Crime, Detective Chief Superintendent Bill Jephson, made this statement as he launched an ACPO-led national focus week on the issue. During the week, police forces are continuing to collate information on commercial cannabis cultivation to provide a national profile on the scale of this crime area and trends in offending – a piece of work which has commenced in the last two weeks.

DCS Jephson said:

“I am delighted at the news that there has been a 20% increase in the reporting of commercial cannabis cultivation by members of the public.

“This figure will be fleshed out by Crimestoppers when they release the results of their high-profile ‘scratch-and-sniff’ campaign a little later today. The campaign has played an important part in the fight against cannabis cultivation, which brings drug-related crime, violence and anti-sociable behaviour into communities.

“Their report will make for very interesting reading and will also include ‘heat maps’ showing cannabis hotspots around the country.

Mr Jephson was marking the start of the ACPO-led “In Focus: Commercial Cannabis Cultivation” week, which will see forces around the country undertaking a mixture of communications and operational activity to encourage public awareness of cannabis farms in tandem with cracking down on them wherever they are found, which will include warrants being executed within some force areas.

In addition to enforcement activity, highlights include Greater Manchester Police running a media event in tandem with their local fire service about the dangers of commercial cannabis cultivation in the community and running a seminar with landlords, housing associations and private housing providers; West Yorkshire Police are developing an education programme on the subject for local authorities, collaborating with landlords to put out information and releasing a newly-commissioned YouTube video on this topic.

Other forces will be issuing communications on the topic and conducting their own on-the-ground activity. Individual forces will be able to give out this information.

He also made reference to the part that cannabis farms play in supporting modern slavery, and the devastating effect that this can have on the lives of those forced to work on these criminal operations.

“Cannabis cultivation not only feeds a multi-million pound black market in increasingly potent and dangerous cannabis, which can have lasting physical and mental health effects on users, but it is also a key driver in modern slavery, with people forced to work on cannabis farms and strong-armed into servitude, either because of their untraceability as illegal migrants, or because they are in debt to the people in control of the operation. We are hopeful that the incoming Modern Slavery Bill and continued work by law enforcement partners will aid us in our work in this area.

“Commercial cannabis cultivation is a problem which affects all areas of our country and it is important that we work with communities to make sure that everyone knows what to look out for – from screened-off windows and unusual amounts of heat emanating from a property to signs of bypassing electricity meters.

“We are determined the bring the full weight of the law against those engaged in this dangerous and exploitative criminal activity, and we ask everyone to remain vigilant and, where you suspect anything, call your local police force on 101 or, alternatively, you can call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or via their website at www.crimestoppers-uk.org.”

Crime Prevention Minister Norman Baker said: "There is a strong link between commercial cannabis cultivation and organised crime. I welcome this campaign to disrupt the damaging trade and crack down on related crime.

“Gangs that cultivate cannabis for profit are often involved in further criminality such as modern slavery, trafficking and the use of firearms. We are already taking action to pursue criminals making money from the misery of innocent people, and to support victims."

“Our cross-government strategy on drugs remains clear. We must prevent drug use in our communities, support users through treatment and wider recovery and ensure law enforcement agencies tackle the organised criminals behind the drugs trade.”
ENDS

Notes to Editors

1)Detective Chief Superintendent Bill Jephson will be available for interview after 1130 on Monday, September 1. Please contact Paddy Cooper on 020 7084 8948 or, out of office hours, the duty press officer on 07803 903686 to submit bids, which will be confirmed on Monday.

2) Other individual forces will be able to give further details of their activities over the course of the In Focus week, which runs from September 1-5

3) The 2012-14 Commercial Cannabis Cultivation Problem Profile will be collated over the coming weeks. A further announcement will be made to media when it is ready for publication. The last one is available here: http://www.acpo.police.uk/documents/crime/2012/20120430CBACCofCPP.pdf …

4) The following definition is used by police to delineate commercial cannabis cultivation from cultivation of a small number of cannabis plants for personal consumption, as per Sentencing Council’s Drug Offences guidelines:

"Cultivation of cannabis should be regarded as 'commercial' if:

Nine or more cannabis plants, at any stage of growth (germination), are being or have been grown OR there is evidence of a 'cannabis farm' as defined below.

The definition of a cannabis farm is:

Any premises, whether commercial or residential, shall be deemed a cannabis farm if it has the following:

The premises, or part therein, has been adapted to such an extent that normal usage would be inhibited and usually present within the premises, or part therein, are items solely concerned for the production of cannabis, i.e.:

• Hydroponics system
• High intensity lighting
• Ventilation / Extraction fans
• Any other associated equipment, and / or
• Electricity meter bypassed (abstraction of electricity)

The overall appearance of the venue, in combination with any available intelligence will provide an indication as to whether the site is, was, or is intended to be a cannabis farm. It is irrelevant how many plants are present on the site. For example, there may be no plants if the site has been made ready to commence cultivation. Alternatively the crop may have already been harvested and only the remnants of the harvested crop will be apparent.

It is acknowledged that a single comprehensive definition for commercial cannabis cultivation incorporating a minimum threshold for the number of plants may exclude some offences from being recorded.

5) ACPO’s drugs leads endorse the work of the government’s drugs advice service www.talktofrank.com and would encourage people with concerns about their own drug use or that of friends or family to consult with the FRANK service for initial advice.

For more information please contact
Paddy Cooper
e: paddy.cooper@acpo.pnn.police.uk