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Cannabis factory found in Moulsecoomb
10:16am Wednesday 14th May 2008
Comments (59)Cooped up in a tiny box room of a semi-detached home in east Brighton an Asian man sleeps, eats and washes. Every other room in the house is packed with pungent cannabis plants and drug-cultivating equipment.
The bathroom resembles an industrial mixing plant, filled with chemical fertilisers used to stimulate the drug's growth.
There are racks of bright UV lights suspended from the ceilings, heating fans and a network of 30cm wide ventilation pipes.
Welcome to 16 Ashurst Road, Moulsecoomb, one of a string of homes rented out by criminal gangs to grow high-strength cannabis.
To anyone looking at it, it is a normal semi-detached house. But passers-by are believed to have been noticing a strong smell of cannabis coming from inside and reported it to police.
And, as The Argus speaks to neighbours, the strong smell of the drug still lingers. Walking through the front door reveals why.
It is believed that up to 600 plants at a time were grown in the property - with an estimated street value of around £200,000. They can be harvested four times a year bringing in a potential annual income of £800,000.
Officers had broken down the door to the three-bedroom house at 9.30am yesterday. Inside they found a 30-yearold man who said he was from Korea and who police believe was acting as a live-in caretaker for the operation.
He was arrested on suspicion of cultivating cannabis and taken into custody for questioning.
Officers recovered 100 plants from the lounge but Sergeant Ray Avery, who is leading the investigation, said up to 500 others had already been cropped from its bedrooms and distributed for sale.
Inside, the house hardly resembled a home and instead could only be described as a factory. While the single occupant was using one downstairs room to live in, the rest of the building was given over to the drug. Plants were grown in individual pots in illuminated rooms where the walls were covered in silver foil to help them retain heat.
To divert the smell of the potent plants out through the roof of the house, the pipes had been fed through holes cut into the ceilings of the rooms.
To power the lights, heating and ventilation fans, each of the upstairs bedrooms had seven double plug sockets, and 11 other power lines. The cables for all these electrics were crudely tacked to the walls up the stairs, across the landings and into the rooms, damaging the plaster.
In the downstairs room where plants remained, the cabling had caught fire and had to be replaced.
Blackened stripes down the walls showed where the cables had burnt out.
Engineers had to be called to make the electricity supply safe so the officers could remove the remaining plants.
In the bathroom, large bottles were laid out in front of the bath, in which the scummy residue of previous fertiliser mixes could clearly be seen. On the landing, two large bunches of bare stalks lay on the floor, suggesting a large amount of leaves and buds had already been cropped - adding to the pervading smell.
Moulsecoomb resident Keith Soutter, 52, said: "It's normally so quiet around here and it's not as bad as people say it is. You get these episodes every now and then and it gives the whole area a bad name. You get so many people moving here that are renting accommodation they come and go and it's difficult to keep track of people."
Semi-retired Dave and Val Goodall, in their 60s, were visibly shocked when The Argus told them about the raid.
Mrs Goodall said: "I saw the police van up there this morning but I didn't know what it was."
Brighton University student James Toone, 22, has lived next door to the house since September.
He said: "That stuff doesn't bother me when it's just weed.
They keep themselves to themselves, it was a quiet house."
Detective Chief Superintendent Kevin Moore said: "What there is in the South East region, and even more broadly than that, is a particular problem that we are classifying as Vietnamese organised crime.
"A number of these cannabis factories are being run by gangs of people originate from Vietnam.
"Cannabis factories are one stage of this operation and there are much higher levels of criminal activity above that. They are linked to to much more serious crimes. We have evidence that they are involved in kidnap, extortion and gun crime. While that has not had a huge impact on Sussex, we have unearthed a number of cannabis factories here. They are renting properties and then using them to grow cannabis on a large scale.
"We often end up dealing with the lowest end of that, what can best be termed as gardeners."
He added: "We have not yet had a significant arrest or investigation in this region. What intelligence and evidence is tending to suggest is that these groups originate from within the Thames Valley area and due to police operations these are being pushed down into the southern counties."
Sgt Avery warned people renting out flats, pointing out that the damage to this house was likely to cost several thousand pounds to put right.
He said: "You can have the nicest house, rent it out in good faith and then it can be trashed like this one has."
Anyone with suspicions about properties should call police on 0845 6070999 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.
Your Say YourArgus
SS, Brighton says...
10:40am Wed 14 May 08
winkywonky, Brighton says...
10:43am Wed 14 May 08
John Rambo, Ready and waiting says...
11:01am Wed 14 May 08
bobby bigballs, Brighton says...
11:13am Wed 14 May 08
jayne, hove says...
11:27am Wed 14 May 08
censored, Brighton says...
12:02pm Wed 14 May 08
censored, Brighton says...
12:11pm Wed 14 May 08
LOL@ Looney Right, Btn says...
12:15pm Wed 14 May 08
John, Cyberspace says...
12:15pm Wed 14 May 08
bobby bigballs wrote:I'm sure the electricity meter would have been bypassed. Standard practice with weed farms
Surely someone must be paying bills at the house for electricity and who pays the rent? who's name is on the rent book/deeds etc. Makes you wonder how many more house have these weed factories in. Its a good way of earning a few bob! Think I'll go up the garden centre later.
LOL@ Looney Right, BTN says...
12:25pm Wed 14 May 08
Forcing people to buy their weed and making them smoke it.
How about the death sentence for anyone breaking the law or doing something deemed anti-social?
(unless it's a parking offence or caught speeding which should be a let off) that'll learn em won't it.
T.Ruth, says...
12:34pm Wed 14 May 08
juju, brighton says...
1:23pm Wed 14 May 08
T.Ruth wrote:What a load of complete tosh. Legalise the stuff and stop pontificating know alls like this. Live and let live!
Yes I do, because I too have witnessed the transformation of Britain for the worse, which has undoubtedly been caused by the increasing abuse of cannabis. All too often we are told that cannabis isn\'t as harmful as the class A drugs, but I don\'t think that is a valid analogy, I believe that cannabis abuse has become so endemic in British society that only the views of total abstainers have any credibility and are worth listening to. One has only to look to the West Indies and in particular to Jamaica to witness the damage cannabis can have on society, it reduces motivation in all who use it and the majority of users are men, hence, Jamaican women have had to become fiercely independent of men in order to survive and the only successful Jamaican business men are the ones who have totally avoided using cannabis.
Paul, Worthing says...
1:32pm Wed 14 May 08
LOL@ Looney Right wrote:The big deal is not so much the gear itself (although increasing numbers of people don't seem able to handle the strength these days), as the not very nice people who organise what you could call the distribution and marketing of it.
Chill out people. What\'s the big deal? If you don\'t want it, don\'t buy it.
me, here says...
1:52pm Wed 14 May 08
reason, hove says...
1:58pm Wed 14 May 08
no, second thoughts, forget all the above, continue waging an expensive 'war on drugs' that cannot be won, will not stop people from smoking the stuff, benefits only criminal gangs, and costs taxpayer money to enforce. much better idea.
Chopper, Mouselwhatever says...
2:01pm Wed 14 May 08
big mac, brighton says...
2:07pm Wed 14 May 08
lustrell, Saltdean says...
2:09pm Wed 14 May 08
Legs11, Brighton says...
2:16pm Wed 14 May 08
lustrell wrote:It will be a private rental. Most housing in schoomersville is ex-council stock or did you miss that whole "right to buy" thing?
Am i going daft or what? How the hell does one Asian bloke get to sleep in a three bedroom council house by himself, when none of my kids can get anywhere near a house in any part of Brighton. Would somebody please explain to me how these peopl get hold of social housing?
Whatever, Scoomb says...
2:28pm Wed 14 May 08
lustrell wrote:16 Ashurst is privately owned. My husband lived there a few years back with some mates (one of whom owned the house - it was his Mums after she died).
Am i going daft or what? How the hell does one Asian bloke get to sleep in a three bedroom council house by himself, when none of my kids can get anywhere near a house in any part of Brighton. Would somebody please explain to me how these peopl get hold of social housing?
B&H council would never give a 3 bed to one guy.
RAS Putin, Brighton says...
2:40pm Wed 14 May 08
FFS, Brighton says...
2:50pm Wed 14 May 08
LOL@ Looney Right, Btn says...
2:54pm Wed 14 May 08
Paul wrote:This is a non story, published in order for the 'deport them/ hang them brigade' to let off steam.
LOL@ Looney Right wrote: Chill out people. What\'s the big deal? If you don\'t want it, don\'t buy it.The big deal is not so much the gear itself (although increasing numbers of people don't seem able to handle the strength these days), as the not very nice people who organise what you could call the distribution and marketing of it.
I wonder how many people using this forum are wearing clothing made by children exploited by and distributed by criminal gangs in sweatshops? I wonder how many people using this forum 'have a clue or even care' about poverty, exploitation and REAL crime?
Me, here says...
3:00pm Wed 14 May 08
T.Ruth wrote:As we are well aware, you are a 'total abstainer' (as well as a total ****, but that's another story), yet you have zero credibility and certainly not worth listening to. Funny old world, isn't it, T.Roll?
Yes I do, because I too have witnessed the transformation of Britain for the worse, which has undoubtedly been caused by the increasing abuse of cannabis. All too often we are told that cannabis isn't as harmful as the class A drugs, but I don't think that is a valid analogy, I believe that cannabis abuse has become so endemic in British society that only the views of total abstainers have any credibility and are worth listening to. One has only to look to the West Indies and in particular to Jamaica to witness the damage cannabis can have on society, it reduces motivation in all who use it and the majority of users are men, hence, Jamaican women have had to become fiercely independent of men in order to survive and the only successful Jamaican business men are the ones who have totally avoided using cannabis.
LOL@ Looney Right, Btn says...
3:01pm Wed 14 May 08
Paul wrote:This is a non story, published in order for the 'deport them/ hang them brigade' to let off steam.
LOL@ Looney Right wrote: Chill out people. What\\\'s the big deal? If you don\\\'t want it, don\\\'t buy it.The big deal is not so much the gear itself (although increasing numbers of people don\'t seem able to handle the strength these days), as the not very nice people who organise what you could call the distribution and marketing of it.
I wonder how many people using this forum are wearing clothing made by children exploited by and distributed by criminal gangs in sweatshops? I wonder how many people using this forum 'have a clue or even care' about poverty, exploitation and REAL crime?
Legs11, Brighton says...
3:11pm Wed 14 May 08
LOL@ Looney Right wrote:Not many!!! But then the Argus seems to censor quite a few informed comments, I've had one of mine dissapear today although some would argue I'm as informed as a spring cabbage!!
Paul wrote:This is a non story, published in order for the 'deport them/ hang them brigade' to let off steam. I wonder how many people using this forum are wearing clothing made by children exploited by and distributed by criminal gangs in sweatshops? I wonder how many people using this forum 'have a clue or even care' about poverty, exploitation and REAL crime?LOL@ Looney Right wrote: Chill out people. What\\\'s the big deal? If you don\\\'t want it, don\\\'t buy it.The big deal is not so much the gear itself (although increasing numbers of people don\'t seem able to handle the strength these days), as the not very nice people who organise what you could call the distribution and marketing of it.
Buy To Win, Surfing the debt tsunami and hanging ten says...
3:15pm Wed 14 May 08
RAS Putin wrote:On the contrary. Dropping house prices and difficulty for first time buyers getting on the ladder has meant a decent return can finally be obtained in Brighton again.
This is what the vile "Buy-to-Slum" culture of the past few years has led to. Luckily "Buy-to-Lose" is now on the way out, sweeping those ghastly new slumlords away in a debt tsunami.
I have personally bought four freeholds of two or more flats over the last few months for effectively less than £110K per unit. All let or being let at £675 to £950 PCM.
Luckily, I have a fantastic agent who secures me decent paying tenants, not Vietnamese drug peddlers.
Jog on you jealous si.
RAS Putin, Brighton says...
3:25pm Wed 14 May 08
Buy To Win wrote:Grossing 8% on a falling asset? Bwahahahaha!
RAS Putin wrote:On the contrary. Dropping house prices and difficulty for first time buyers getting on the ladder has meant a decent return can finally be obtained in Brighton again.
This is what the vile "Buy-to-Slum" culture of the past few years has led to. Luckily "Buy-to-Lose" is now on the way out, sweeping those ghastly new slumlords away in a debt tsunami.
I have personally bought four freeholds of two or more flats over the last few months for effectively less than £110K per unit. All let or being let at £675 to £950 PCM.
Luckily, I have a fantastic agent who secures me decent paying tenants, not Vietnamese drug peddlers.
Jog on you jealous si.
RAS Putin, Brighton says...
3:28pm Wed 14 May 08
Buy to Win, Driving past RAS Putin's and his Mummy's house in my Aston says...
3:55pm Wed 14 May 08
RAS Putin wrote:Better than your 0% of nothing. And who says its 8%? You know nothing of my finances
Buy To Win wrote:Grossing 8% on a falling asset? Bwahahahaha!RAS Putin wrote: This is what the vile "Buy-to-Slum" culture of the past few years has led to. Luckily "Buy-to-Lose" is now on the way out, sweeping those ghastly new slumlords away in a debt tsunami.On the contrary. Dropping house prices and difficulty for first time buyers getting on the ladder has meant a decent return can finally be obtained in Brighton again. I have personally bought four freeholds of two or more flats over the last few months for effectively less than £110K per unit. All let or being let at £675 to £950 PCM. Luckily, I have a fantastic agent who secures me decent paying tenants, not Vietnamese drug peddlers. Jog on you jealous si.
None of these flats will fall below what I paid for them and seeing as I plan to hold on to them for the rest of my life and then pass them to my children, I suggest that they (and the rest of my large portfolio) will only ever increase in value as history has always shown.
'Bwahahahaha' to you. Whatever that is supposed to mean.
reason, hove says...
4:20pm Wed 14 May 08
zack, brighton says...
5:36pm Wed 14 May 08
whogiveza, Brighton says...
5:52pm Wed 14 May 08
Because if it is, how come there have been no checks as to how many people are living there, and so on.
I for one, would like to know the facts, rather than listen to idle conjecture.
Harry Squatter, undisclosed says...
6:04pm Wed 14 May 08
julian, hove says...
6:31pm Wed 14 May 08
Dave, Wivelsfield says...
8:02pm Wed 14 May 08
No doubt another "farm" is being set up right now. But as others have said there are simple sollutions it just takes the will to deal with it.
David Vernon, Saltdean says...
8:25pm Wed 14 May 08
pufferman, moulsecoomb says...
11:32pm Wed 14 May 08
Joe B, Brighton says...
9:47am Thu 15 May 08
Fizz, Brighton says...
10:25am Thu 15 May 08
julian wrote:Hear, hear !
I think alot of these comments and bad english shows exactly what cannabis does to your brain.
Ollieox, says...
11:22am Thu 15 May 08
elizabeth, brighton says...
11:57am Thu 15 May 08
juju wrote:well said ruth, but brighton argus is not the place to let people know the real cost of cannabis, it numbs childrens brains, and it can ruin there lives, they drop out of school, and then have no money, so they start to steal from there families,and that causes tension and that might result in them being chucked out of the house for violent behaviour, and then that leaves them on the streets, and thats where problems start, they steal , they then become open to all sorts of other drugs, so there is a price to be paid for cannabis use, especially in the very young, and i am talking about kids of 12/13 smoking cannabis, when there brains are not mature enough to deal with it. I am sick to death of reading comments from adults who think smoking a few joints a day is ok, Lets just hope that you do not have kids, because only when you go through it will you really know the pain and trauma it causes to all family members, It ruins and breaks them up, and I know there are lots of mothers who will know what i am talking about ,
T.Ruth wrote:What a load of complete tosh. Legalise the stuff and stop pontificating know alls like this. Live and let live!
Yes I do, because I too have witnessed the transformation of Britain for the worse, which has undoubtedly been caused by the increasing abuse of cannabis. All too often we are told that cannabis isn\\\'t as harmful as the class A drugs, but I don\\\'t think that is a valid analogy, I believe that cannabis abuse has become so endemic in British society that only the views of total abstainers have any credibility and are worth listening to. One has only to look to the West Indies and in particular to Jamaica to witness the damage cannabis can have on society, it reduces motivation in all who use it and the majority of users are men, hence, Jamaican women have had to become fiercely independent of men in order to survive and the only successful Jamaican business men are the ones who have totally avoided using cannabis.
katy, hove says...
12:00pm Thu 15 May 08
Harry Squatter wrote:so where do you live, we should send the police around to your house, I think its time mothers and fathers took this into there own hands, and reported everyone who they are suspicious of. Lets protect our young kids, from morons like this
Well, as Argus stories go, Sam seems to have put some effort into this one. However, did anyone notice the inaccuracies? "There are racks of bright UV lights suspended from the ceilings" Actually, those are Metal Halide and High Pressure Sodium lights. "the walls were covered in silver foil to help them retain heat." No, to reflect light. Obviously Sam doesn't grow weed. But at least the story was written better than "two cars collided today, and there were no injuries".
matt, brighton says...
1:53pm Thu 15 May 08
Nick, Brighton says...
4:43pm Thu 15 May 08
katy wrote:Hmmm,
Harry Squatter wrote: Well, as Argus stories go, Sam seems to have put some effort into this one. However, did anyone notice the inaccuracies? "There are racks of bright UV lights suspended from the ceilings" Actually, those are Metal Halide and High Pressure Sodium lights. "the walls were covered in silver foil to help them retain heat." No, to reflect light. Obviously Sam doesn't grow weed. But at least the story was written better than "two cars collided today, and there were no injuries".so where do you live, we should send the police around to your house, I think its time mothers and fathers took this into there own hands, and reported everyone who they are suspicious of. Lets protect our young kids, from morons like this
Why send the Police? Because he is posting factual information rather than the total BS that has been written in the 40 or so other posts, and the main story.
Cannabis really does bring out the numpties, both users and non users alike.
Harry Squatter, Wouldn't you like to know says...
6:16pm Thu 15 May 08
kayte, brighton says...
6:50pm Thu 15 May 08
Harry Squatter wrote:i apologize nick for calling you a moron, its just that i have seen so many kids ruined by smoking cannabis, they have dropped out of school and have no prospect, it makes me mad, this cannabis was grown for profit, to sell onthe streets of east sussex, it was not some person growing it a home for personal use,, I just feel strongly about how it affects kids, but i apologize to you for being so rude, its a very emotional subject for me, as i have been personally effected by cannabis in my family,and i am living wththe aftermath
Thanks, Nick, for the common sense comment. And Katy, just because I know things you don't doesn't make me a criminal. For all you know, I could be a policeman who specialises in this sort of thing, or a keen gardener. One thing is for sure, though: I resent being called a moron.
Harry Squatter, Still not telling says...
6:54pm Thu 15 May 08
T.Ruth, says...
11:16am Fri 16 May 08
elizabeth wrote:Thanks Elizabeth, but unfortunately comments from that arrogant idiot who calls himself "Me here" are all too common on issues of this nature, which doesn't bode well for the decent people or the future of this country.
juju wrote:well said ruth, but brighton argus is not the place to let people know the real cost of cannabis, it numbs childrens brains, and it can ruin there lives, they drop out of school, and then have no money, so they start to steal from there families,and that causes tension and that might result in them being chucked out of the house for violent behaviour, and then that leaves them on the streets, and thats where problems start, they steal , they then become open to all sorts of other drugs, so there is a price to be paid for cannabis use, especially in the very young, and i am talking about kids of 12/13 smoking cannabis, when there brains are not mature enough to deal with it. I am sick to death of reading comments from adults who think smoking a few joints a day is ok, Lets just hope that you do not have kids, because only when you go through it will you really know the pain and trauma it causes to all family members, It ruins and breaks them up, and I know there are lots of mothers who will know what i am talking about ,T.Ruth wrote: Yes I do, because I too have witnessed the transformation of Britain for the worse, which has undoubtedly been caused by the increasing abuse of cannabis. All too often we are told that cannabis isn\\\'t as harmful as the class A drugs, but I don\\\'t think that is a valid analogy, I believe that cannabis abuse has become so endemic in British society that only the views of total abstainers have any credibility and are worth listening to. One has only to look to the West Indies and in particular to Jamaica to witness the damage cannabis can have on society, it reduces motivation in all who use it and the majority of users are men, hence, Jamaican women have had to become fiercely independent of men in order to survive and the only successful Jamaican business men are the ones who have totally avoided using cannabis.What a load of complete tosh. Legalise the stuff and stop pontificating know alls like this. Live and let live!
Hoostraten, says...
11:30am Fri 16 May 08
RAS Putin wrote:Im afraid you are incorrect Ras putin, repossessions have created a huge demand in rental properties which cant be met, this will result in rents being increased and but to lets making even more money Im afraid to say.
This is what the vile "Buy-to-Slum" culture of the past few years has led to. Luckily "Buy-to-Lose" is now on the way out, sweeping those ghastly new slumlords away in a debt tsunami.
Hoostraten, says...
1:18pm Fri 16 May 08
RAS Putin wrote:Im afraid what you claim is incorrect Ras Putin, because repossessions have created a huge demand in the rental property market which cant be met, and this will result in rents being increased and buy to let investors making even more money Im afraid to say.
This is what the vile "Buy-to-Slum" culture of the past few years has led to. Luckily "Buy-to-Lose" is now on the way out, sweeping those ghastly new slumlords away in a debt tsunami.
Say No to cannabis, says...
1:39pm Fri 16 May 08
Legs11, Brighton says...
3:53pm Fri 16 May 08
Say No to cannabis wrote:If you are involved in this how come you don't sound very scientific? Come on facts, figures, graphs and intelligent reasoning are required not just your opinion! You provide absolutely NO evidence.
I am involved in the study of the effects cannabis is having on those who cohabit with cannabis users and our research has revealed some alarming facts, in particular the long term effects secondary cannabis smoke is having on babies and young children. It appears that even a short exposure to secondary cannabis smoke is capable of having a devastating and permanent psychotic effect on a young child; but even more disturbing was the evidence we found that proved longer exposures appear to trigger schizophrenia that will affect the child for the rest of their life.
Say NO to cannabis, says...
7:56pm Fri 16 May 08
Legs11 wrote:My comment wasn't directed at individuals such as you, it was simply posted to make habitual no hope cannabis users aware of the harm they are doing to those around them who have no say in the matter i.e. the very young and innocent members of our society who through no fault of their own, happen to live with habitual cannabis smokers.
Say No to cannabis wrote: I am involved in the study of the effects cannabis is having on those who cohabit with cannabis users and our research has revealed some alarming facts, in particular the long term effects secondary cannabis smoke is having on babies and young children. It appears that even a short exposure to secondary cannabis smoke is capable of having a devastating and permanent psychotic effect on a young child; but even more disturbing was the evidence we found that proved longer exposures appear to trigger schizophrenia that will affect the child for the rest of their life.If you are involved in this how come you don\'t sound very scientific? Come on facts, figures, graphs and intelligent reasoning are required not just your opinion! You provide absolutely NO evidence.
Legs11, Brighton says...
8:27pm Fri 16 May 08
!!!, Brighton says...
10:35am Wed 14 May 08