A significant cannabis factory has been found on an agricultural premises, in a rural location at Sessay near Thirsk.
The discovery was made last week by our neighbourhood officers who found more than 1,100 cannabis plants, as well as dried cannabis, packaged in approximately 500g-1kg bags within a sophisticated set-up, on a hidden site.
The farm took days to dismantle, with experts putting an estimated street value of more than half a million pounds on just the plants. Various lighting and equipment, which is also expected to be worth hundreds of thousands of pounds, was seized.
Following the find, we launched an in-depth investigation and have so far arrested seven men from the West Yorkshire area on suspicion of cultivating cannabis. All seven have been interviewed and released on conditional bail.
As officers entered the site at 6am, they were met by a large Caucasian Shepherd Dog who was on his own. Due to the size of the dog, they initially exercised caution but quickly realised that they were barking up the wrong tree as he was all fluff and very friendly.
Thankfully the dog was well-nourished, and as the hours ticked on, our officers bonded with the nameless dog. Although they became friends fur-ever, the dog is now in appropriate care, and we are working with our partners on a rehoming plan.
The local Neighbourhood Inspector for Hambleton, Rory Sadler said:
We received community intelligence suggesting there was a cannabis farm at the location, we conducted enquiries and were subsequently granted a warrant by magistrates.
We executed the warrant and discovered a large, commercial scale cannabis farm. I’m grateful to the member of the public who contacted us with this information.
The production of a cannabis grow on this scale causes significant issues for communities, as it is often linked to violence, exploitation and other forms of criminality.
Illegal enterprises such as this will not be tolerated in North Yorkshire and we will always work to proactively remove them.
As our inquiries continue, this significant operation is now firmly dismantled and shut down.
