'Joint effort' in Wellingborough village cannabis factory drug bust that sees 381 plants seized
Suspicions raised by neighbours of illegal activities in a Wellingborough village street have led to a drug bust of a cannabis factory.
After intelligence from Irchester residents, police acted on community concerns and executed a warrant on April 3, uncovering a cannabis factory inside a property.
Officers seized 381 plants in various stages of growth with a street value of approximately £381,000.
Neighbourhood Policing Sergeant Glenn Thompson said: “First of all, I would like to thank the local community for their assistance on this investigation. Obtaining this warrant was a real joint effort and I hope this case reassures them that we will listen to and act on their concerns.
“Drugs cultivation and drugs use is one of our locally identified priorities. These priorities are set by the community and so this result is great for all of us.
“I am also pleased with the fast turnaround from the information being received to presenting it to the courts for a warrant, and the warrant being issued.
“Finally, I’d like to thank PC Michael Norman for his work on this case. We will continue working hard, as a neighbourhood policing team, to make our patch as safe as possible where the community feel empowered to report their concerns to us.”
In recent weeks, the local community in and around Thrift Street in Irchester, had been reporting their concerns to their local neighbourhood policing team regarding suspicious activity around a property in the area.
The team acted on the community’s local intelligence, collecting evidence and presenting it before Northampton Magistrates Court on Wednesday, April 2.
As a result, they were able to obtain a warrant which was executed the next day (April 3), uncovering a cannabis factory inside the property.
Western Power was called to make the electrics safe as the electricity supply had been illegally bypassed posing a fire risk to neighbouring properties.