A number of suspected cannabis farms in Tameside have been shut down recently due to a concentrated effort by the local neighbourhood team.

In recent months, officers have conducted numerous warrants, acting on intelligence gathered both internally and within the local community.

The result has been the seizure of thousands of cannabis plants, thousands of pounds worth of growing equipment, money, and other drug-related paraphernalia.

In recent months, positive warrants executed in the search of properties cultivating cannabis have totalled 16: seven in May, five in June, and four in July. Numerous other warrants have resulted in various arrests and finds.

The warrants have taken place across Tameside, with homes in Ashton, Stalybridge, Dukinfield, and Audenshaw receiving visits from officers.

Appropriate action has subsequently been taken, including arrests and charges, while officers have continued to listen to local concerns about drugs.

Most recently, officers executed a warrant on Monday morning last week. While the warrant only saw a small amount of drugs for personal use seized, it forms a part of the neighbourhood package. The local team will continue to investigate, disrupt, and simply let people know that they are there.

Sergeant Lisa Halsall, from GMP’s Tameside district, said: “We are determined to shut down cannabis farms across Tameside and we want the community to know that we are constantly working to disrupt them. We will not allow this sort of criminality to fly under the radar.

“The distribution of drugs can result in violent crime, and the exploitation of vulnerable people. Furthermore, the equipment used can be prone to malfunctioning, which has resulted in dangerous fires that have spread to neighbouring homes.

“We will continue to take action when and where is necessary.”

If you have any information that you would like to share, you can contact officers on 101, or call the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.

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