Text entered

Police go Dutch to tackle cannabis farming

Northumbria Police

27 January 2010


Northumbria Police is linking in with Dutch Police as part of an ongoing commitment to stamp out cannabis farms in the region.
Detectives from the force's Crime Department played host to the visitors from the Netherlands to share ideas on best practice for dealing with the farms.
John Jespers, Johan Warmerdam and Eva Stavenuiter are seconded to the Organised Cannabis Cultivation Programme in the Netherlands.
Detective Inspector George Duff, from Northumbria's Crime Department, said: "The officers suggested this visit because they were aware that the force has carried out a very successful operation to tackle Vietnamese cannabis farms and they wanted to discuss what we had learnt and share their own experiences."
Police in the Netherlands use a range of high-tech methods to identify cannabis farms including a mini helicopter - the Canna Chopper - which is equipped with thermal imaging and detection sensors to trace cannabis fields from the air.
Dutch neighbourhood officers are equipped with handheld cameras - Canna Sniffers - of similar size and appearance to a torch, which can detect the chemicals given off by the cannabis plants.
DI Duff said: "Cannabis farming had become a serious issue in the Netherlands with estimated profits from the illegal crop worth billions of euros a year.
"Although there are far fewer cannabis farms In Northumbria than in the Netherlands, this doesn't mean we can become complacent about them.
"We're committed to stamping out the practice altogether and will work with other forces to share information and intelligence."
Last year officers from the Northumbria Police Total Policing Task Force teamed up with senior Vietnamese police officers in a joint approach to stamping out cannabis farms.
The initiative was part of the Task Force's ongoing operation to target organised cannabis farming in Northumbria - Operation Attero - in which more than 30 cannabis farms were dismantled and 25 people remanded in custody. More than 9,000 plants were recovered with an approximate annual street value of more than £4 million.