Police discover one of Merseyside's biggest cannabis farms
Over 700 plants found in Allerton
A multi-million pound cannabis farm has been discovered in south Liverpool thanks to vigilant local residents. The 719-plant farm, capable of producing £2.8m of cannabis in a single year, was found at a semi-detached house on Mather Avenue in Allerton. A resident reported hearing someone breaking into a house in nearby Burnham Road during the early hours of March 24th and saw a man acting suspiciously in the street. The police were called and officers patrolling in an unmarked police car attended. The suspect was spotted running away and several other men also fled the scene, leaving two cars - a Fiat Punto and a Ford Focus - at the scene. More patrols were deployed, including officers with police dogs and a roads policing unit, and, with the assistance of the police helicopter, three men were arrested on suspicion of burglary and going equipped for theft. A 31-year-old man from Wavertree was arrested having been tracked by the dog patrol to a front garden in Burnham Road. A crow bar was found nearby. A 19-year-old from Wavertree was arrested after being chased by traffic officers through gardens in Greenleigh Road and Abbots Hey. He was talked down from the roof of an electricity substation on Herron Eccles playing fields. And a 22-year-old from Toxteth was arrested after a neighbourhood patrol officer found him out of breath and running away from the scene of the burglary incident towards Booker Avenue. After the three men were arrested officers returned to the scene of the break-in and following a wider search discovered that a house on Mather Avenue had had its front and back ground floor windows smashed (no entry had been gained to the house on Burnham Road). Officers went inside to investigate and found five rooms on two floors being used to grow cannabis plants. The scene was held overnight and the next morning the force’s specialist cannabis dismantling team (CDT) spent four hours at the house seizing evidence and dismantling growing equipment. Any investigation by Liverpool CID into who is responsible for the cannabis farm is underway. The house was being rented and the owner is not being treated as a suspect. Damage estimated to be around £10,000 has been caused to the property. Sergeant Angie Norstrom from the CDT said: “This was a very large and profitable cannabis factory right in the heart of suburban Liverpool. It just goes to show that organised criminal groups will set these farms up wherever they hope they will avoid detection. But thanks to a vigilant local resident who heard suspicious noises and reported them, officers were able to quickly get to the scene to investigate. We believe that the house was in the process of being broken into when the offenders were disturbed and the cannabis plants may have been what they were after. “Thanks to the officers who responded to the 999 call three men, who were acting suspiciously in the area and who ran off when the first patrol arrived, were arrested and have been interviewed as part of an on-going investigation. Patrols worked as a team to lock the area down and I’m sure the local community will be reassured to know that officers are working day and night to keep the public safe. “Cannabis farms pose a real risk to us all and can be set up anywhere there is an opportunity to go unnoticed. Criminals rig up their own electricity to avoid detection, which creates a dangerous fire risk for neighbouring houses, and irrigation systems for the plants can cause leaks and floods both in that property and anyone living below. “Cannabis farms also fuel violence between criminal gangs and the profits from selling the drugs are used to fund cocaine and heroin supply and the purchase of weapons. “So it is everyone’s interests, no matter where you live, to keep an eye out for signs of a cannabis farm in your street and report anything suspicious to the police so that we can take decisive action.” The three men arrested on March 24th have been released on police bail pending further enquiries. Some of the signs that cannabis is being grown are: • Strange smells and sounds • Frequent and varied visitors to a property, often at unusual times • Gardening equipment being taken into a property, such as plant pots, fertiliser, fans and industrial lighting • Windows are sealed and covered or the curtains are permanently closed • Heat from an adjoining property • Birds gathering on a roof in cold weather • Individually these activities may seem commonplace, however, together may indicate something more sinister. Anyone with any information can call police on 101, or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.