Police uncovered a huge cannabis farm – fitted with a potentially deadly booby trap door – grown in a derelict former Poundland shop
A former Poundland store was taken over by a criminal gang and turned into a drug farm filled with £2million worth of cannabis and a potentially deadly bobby trap.
Shocking images showed how the old Poundland and Woolworths store, which had been left derelict after the retailers moved out, had actually been transformed into a cannabis plant. Cambridgeshire Police found more than 1,000 cannabis plants packed into 20 rooms across two floors at the abandoned store in Huntingdon town centre. This criminal lair had also been protected by an electrified door that could have potentially killed intruders from rival gangs.
Dramatic footage released by the force showed a well-established drug farm had unknowingly been set up in the middle of the town’s high street, fitted with living spaces for so-called gardeners. Double beds, TVs and pans in the kitchen area suggested several people could have also been living at the criminal location for some time.
Police images also show a large amount of soil, vegetation, and electrical equipment. The site even had a 3 metre hole dug into the ground so the criminals could access the main power cable to power their illegal operation.
This shocking operation was unravelled when an officer was passing by the building and noticed a new CCTV camera had been put up outside. Woolworths closed in 2008 and the store was later turned into a bargain retailer, but the site has been vacant since 2021.
The building has since been made safe by the by UK Power Networks and the plants, with a street value of over £1million, were seized by police. No arrests have been made in this investigation but detectives have said they are looking for four men seen leaving the derelict store on CCTV.
Neighbourhood Inspector Colin Norden said the officer who found the drug farm flagged the building because of the “strange” sight of cameras outside. The inspector said: “So he had a poke around – good policing – and came round the back and saw everything was boarded up.
“He could hear fans running so he guessed what he’d found and did some more inquiries. Fifteen minutes later and we were through the door.”
Norden said: “Officers were carrying our anti-social behaviour patrols in the town yesterday when they were drawn to the signs of a suspected cannabis factory at the old Poundland store.
“While no arrests have been made at this time, an investigation is ongoing. Growing and selling cannabis is not only illegal but can also generate funds for gangs to use in other criminal enterprises.
“We will continue to disrupt drug dealing networks and stop criminals making money from the illegal drugs trade and we continue to ask for the communities [sic] support in doing this.”