Haltwhistle Cannabis Farm Worth £200,000

24 February 2012, 12:24 | Updated: 30 March 2016, 13:50

More than 1,000 cannabis plants have been removed from a cannabis farm found inside an industrial unit at Hadrian Enterprise Park in Haltwhistle

On Thursday, February 16th, officers executed a search warrant at the unit after information from a member of the public. 

Inside they found a sophisticated and professional cannabis farm setup with large quantities of cannabis plants and cultivation equipment. 

Conditions inside the unit meant that officers had difficulty getting inside and searching the premises.

Specially trained search officers were brought in wearing protective equipment to search and clear the unit. 

In total 1,153 plants were removed, 750 of them had flowered heads meaning they were more valuable.
 
Officers estimate the value of the haul to be worth around £200,000.
 
The plants have been destroyed by police and enquiries into who is responsible for the cannabis farm is ongoing. 

Northumberland Chief Inspector Peter Reeve said:
"We are delighted with this result and the fact we've been able to stop around £200,000 worth of drugs from getting onto the streets of the region. 

It's been a difficult operation due to the conditions inside the unit. 

When we got into the premises we found signs of asbestos inside. The electricity supply was dangerously overloaded and there was live wires throughout the building. We also found gas cylinders and didn't know what was in them. 

Sections of the floor and roof inside the building weren't safe and officers had to take extreme care when carrying out the search. 

As with any operation of this nature officer safety is paramount and  it took us two days to get the whole place searched and have the drugs and equipment safely removed."

Enquiries are ongoing to find those responsible for this cannabis farm and anyone with any information is asked to contact police on 101 or by ringing Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.