Officers from Cowdenbeath Community Team havebeen targeting local cannabis dealers who cultivate the drugs for personal use and to supply to others.
Acting on information supplied by concerned members of the public, officers carried out five searches of houses in recent weeks, recovering cannabis with a street value of around £30,000.
Community Sergeant Lindsay Black said: “One of the cultivations was discovered by officers on foot patrol in Cowdenbeath who recognised the unique smell of cannabis. Local enquiries confirmed that the smell was coming from one particular house and a search warrant was obtained.
“Twenty eight cannabis plants and other items were recovered with a street value of about £8,000. This was an outstanding piece of work by local officers. It is illegal to grow cannabis and police are duty bound to investigate information, which can be given in strictest confidence, and report offenders accordingly.
“The other four houses were searched when officers acted on information provided by members of the public who were also alerted by the pungent smell.”
Community Safety Officer, PC Gary Kenhard said: “Other indicators of cannabis cultivations may be that windows are blacked out using bin liners or the curtains are never open in particular rooms where strong lights are often on for long periods of time.
“Often people will bypass, or attempt to bypass, electricity supplies which raises fire safety concerns for not only the occupants and their families but neighbouring houses too. If young families are found to live in homes where cannabis has been grown, reports will be sent to the Social Work Department as well as the Procurator Fiscal, as there are obvious concerns for the welfare of the children.
“Any equipment used to assist plant growth, such as tents or lights, will be seized and forfeited as part of the disruption to drug dealers.
“Some houses are actually privately rented where the owners only realise their properties have been used to grow cannabis cultivations after they discover extensive damage to rooms and attic space when the lease period is over.
“We will deal robustly with illegal drugs that plague our communities. If anyone has any suspicions about houses in their area or any other drugs related information, they are asked to speak to their local officers or telephone Fife Constabulary on 0845 600 5702. Crimestoppers can also be contacted anonymously on 0800 555 111.
“Information can be given at any time, in confidence, and officers will assess the information and act on it appropriately.”
