Cannabis scratch and sniff cards to track down farms

[cronus]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-21833045

Cannabis scratch and sniff cards to track down farms

Marijuana-scented scratch cards are to be posted to hundreds of households in a bid to detect illegal cannabis farms.

Crimestoppers, which runs the campaign, said the cards would help people to recognise the smell of cannabis and report suspected plantations to police.

The charity said there was a 15% rise in the number of cannabis farms found in homes between 2011 and 2012.

West Yorkshire police area had the largest number of cannabis plantations uncovered in the UK.

According to the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO), about 1,800 cannabis farms were found in the area by officers between 2010 and 2012.

South Yorkshire had the second highest number with 1,600 farms uncovered in the same period.

Other hotspots included London, where more than 1,200 farms were detected, Greater Manchester, which had 800 plantations uncovered and Humberside, where officers found nearly 300 cultivations.

'Crackdown on cannabis'
Andy Bliss, from ACPO, said: "Many people don't realise that the empty, run-down house or flat on their street with people coming and going late at night may actually be a commercial cannabis farm.

"It's not just the stereotype of the remote rural set or disused industrial estate unit.

"These farms are often run by organised criminals [and] they bring crime and anti-social behaviour into local communities causing real harm and leaving people feeling unsafe."

Crimestoppers said growers were moving way from commercial and industrial properties and using homes to cultivate the plants.

The green and black cards release a scent that replicates the actual smell of cannabis during its growing state when scratched.

(continued, should prove popular?)

[JimC]

How bizarre...

[cronus]

How bizarre...

Could backfire....some people haven't smoked a joint in years and this will bring it all back.

[JimC]

How bizarre...

Could backfire....some people haven't smoked a joint in years and this will bring it all back.

I'd better not scratch one, then - I might come over all funny, like...

[Azathoth]

they bring crime and anti-social behaviour into local communities

What utter fucking nonsense. They put them in quiet places for a reason and they have a vested interest in keeping the area quiet. The last thing they want is coppers all over the place.

[Gawdzilla Sama]

they bring crime and anti-social behaviour into local communities

What utter fucking nonsense. They put them in quiet places for a reason and they have a vested interest in keeping the area quiet. The last thing they want is coppers all over the place.

Erm, that would certainly be a rational plan.

[Azathoth]

The guys who run these big farms are not stupid stoners

[Gawdzilla Sama]

The guys who run these big farms are not stupid stoners

The big ones, yes. But the in-home growers are not the pick of the litter. I've been on raids to such places in SoCal, and they were pretty much the same, pig pens with grow lights. We canceled one raid when the meth lab in the garage detonated and blew the side out of the house next door, killing two people, Mom and two yo daughter.

[JacksSmirkingRevenge]

One more thing for the kids in the playground to collect.

[Mysturji]

...Marijuana-scented scratch cards are to be posted to hundreds of households in a bid to detect illegal cannabis farms....

Meanwhile, in other news, 79 Royal Mail sorting offices were raided by police with sniffer dogs overnight.

[cronus]

[Gawdzilla Sama]

I smoked Tareytons for a while. Don't know if they were the same company.