Pubdate: Wed, 29 Feb 2012
Source: New Zealand Herald (New Zealand)
Copyright: 2012 New Zealand Herald
Contact:  http://www.nzherald.co.nz/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/300
Author: Natalie Akoorie

COPS FOLLOW THEIR NOSES TO CROP OF CANNABIS PLANTS

Cannabis growers beware - you can't escape the long nose of the
law.

The unmistakable smell of up to 100 cannabis plants being cultivated
at a Hamilton house caught the attention of two passing police
constables when it wafted into their car as they drove past on a
routine patrol.

Police believe a 57-year-old man living at the house may have been
discreetly flushing a ventilation system when the officers went past
the Avalon Drive property at 5.45am yesterday.

Under the Misuse of Drugs Act the pair conducted an immediate search
of the house they thought the smell was coming from and found between
50 and 100 cannabis plants inside a room.

Shift manager Senior Sergeant Gill Meadows praised the constables for
being so alert at the end of a busy night.

"The pair parked their patrol car around the corner and 'followed
their nose' to the source of the smell," Ms Meadows said.

"They identified the address where they thought the smell was coming
from and knocked on the door. When the door was opened they had little
doubt, given the strong smell, that they were at the right place."

They found the plants along with quantities of leaf material and
growing and ventilation equipment.

The man appeared in the Hamilton District Court yesterday charged with
possession of cannabis and further, more serious charges are likely,
Ms Meadows said.

Police spokesman Andrew McAlley said mature marijuana plants were
worth around $1000 each, while an ounce of the drug sold for between
$350 and $500.

He said if 100 plants were allowed to fully grow, a conservative
estimated yield of 225g per plant could fetch up to $400,000 in income.

Ms Meadows said the bust proved the value of preventative
patrols.

In the 2011 annual cannabis operation, the national total of plants
destroyed was 97,000.

Police usually experienced an increase in cannabis operations with the
start of the summer growing season.

A study involving the police and Environmental Science and Research
released last month found that levels of THC, the primary psychoactive
compound in cannabis, was more than four times stronger than in 1996
when ESR last tested it.

Police and ESR used sophisticated hydroponic equipment to complete
three growing cycles, nursing six plants at a time to maturity. The
study revealed the drug was more than four times as strong as in 1996.

Police believed that THC levels had increased significantly in recent
years because criminals were using more sophisticated growing methods,
helped by the availability of specialised equipment, such as that sold
at hydroponic growing shops.
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