Two men arrested after stolen vehicles located at a property in Southampton

Detectives are investigating after we located a cannabis cultivation and three stolen vehicles at a property in Southampton.

At around 2pm on Tuesday, 7 September, an off duty police officer reported seeing suspected drugs activity taking place at an address in Lupin Road, Southampton.

Officers attended and carried out a search of the property.

During the search, they located a number of cannabis plants growing in the garden, two motorbikes and two Ford Transit vans.

Both of the vans and one of the motorbikes had been reported as stolen.  

A 29-year-old man from Southampton has been arrested on suspicion of cultivating cannabis. He has been released from custody but remains on police bail with conditions.

A second man, aged 32, from Ashford in Surrey has been arrested on suspicion of cultivating cannabis and theft of a motor vehicle. He has been released from custody but remains under investigation.

Enquiries are ongoing.

Chief Inspector Ricky Dhanda said: “Having the eyes and ears in our community is key to help tackle organised crime. We have not only been able to disrupt local drug-related activity which we hope will go some way to protect others from drug related harm, but we have also been able to locate four stolen motor vehicles. Drug offences are not always in isolation to other crimes, there is often a complex link to other crimes that have a direct impact to the community, such as theft and burglaries.

 “We know that a lot people think it’s just cannabis and nothing serious and we have also heard people say if it were legalised, all of these problems we talk about would go away. It is not for us to get into debate about the law, and while the production and supply of cannabis is illegal, people are victims of associated crimes including serious harm, and people suffer – which is something that we cannot ignore. It is vital we take action in order to reduce drug related harm and the associated crime to help keep our communities safe.

“It is also linked to anti-social behaviour, like drug-related activity in your neighbourhood, which can cause misery to local communities.

“We are really keen to hear from people who suspect there is cannabis cultivation or drug related activity going on their neighbourhood.

“Every call you make to us is logged and helps us build up an intelligence picture about what might be happening in your community. This allows us to take action and prevent your neighbourhoods from harm.”

People can contact us on 101 or online at https://www.hampshire.police.uk/ro/report/.

Alternatively you can report to Crimestoppers 100% anonymously on 0800 555 111 or online at https://crimestoppers-uk.org/.

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Can you spot the signs of cannabis cultivation?

1. There's a strong, sickly smell.It might sound obvious, but most cannabis grows are discovered by passers-by or keen-nosed residents catching a whiff of the drug's familiar smell.
2. High levels of condensation. Landlords might notice damp on the walls or peeling wallpaper, while from the outside a neighbour might spot condensation on the windows, even when it's not the depths of winter. The condensation may well be due to inside having been turned into a makeshift greenhouse.
3. Constantly covered or blacked out windows.Do they have the curtains drawn all day long? Or have they put black-outs over all the windows? It might make it look like the house is unoccupied, but blacked out windows could well mean inside is really, really bright with all those strong lights.
4. Cannabis growing equipment transported to and from the house. Thousands of pounds worth of equipment is often needed for large-scale grows - have you seen lots of things being delivered to the house, or large items being taken in or out?
5. Constant buzz of ventilation. If you can hear the constant noise of a fan, at all times of the day or night, chances are it could be acting as ventilation for the cannabis grow.
6. Strong, constant lighting day and night.Cannabis needs light to grow, so watch out for homes with bright lighting at all times of the day and night. Lights will often be on a timer switch, coming on in the middle of the night.
7. Lots of power cables and rocketing electricity bills.The lights, dehumidifiers and heaters take a lot of electricity. Growers will often hack into the electricity wires before the meter to that individual house, and so bypass having to pay for the electricity. If you are a landlord who gets a copy of the bill, has it dropped suddenly, or gone up suddenly? If you are a neighbour and your bill has rocketed – maybe your next door neighbour has hacked into your mains and you're paying to grow their drugs?
8. Heat, birds on the roof, and a lack of snow.Cannabis factories produce a lot of heat, which can cause tell-tales signs, especially in winter. When it snows, the roofs of cannabis farms can be obvious as the snow melts, meaning it is probably the only house on the street without a snow-covered roof. Birds also like roosting on a nice warm roof...
9. Unsociable comings and goings. Are there lots of unfamiliar faces turning up at the house at any time of the day and night? It could just be a popular family, but maybe it's something more sinister.