TWO MEN have been arrested after a cannabis farm was discovered in what was once a Stalybridge pub.
At about 8.20am today (Wednesday, November 30), police burst into the former Church on Wakefield Road after nearby residents spoke of a smell emanating from it.
When they gained entry, they found between 600 and 700 plants, worth in the region of £350,000, spread across three floors.
The men fled the scene but were later picked up for questioning.
Greater Manchester officers from both Ashton police station and the Tactical Aid Unit (TAU) joined forces for the raid.
TAU made entry to the property through a steel roller door and found plants at different stages of cultivation, plus makeshift designated rooms sealed off with black bin bags, housing young and more mature plants, as well as those ready to be harvested.
Throughout the building weaved an intricate web of ventilation pipes and lighting – and an ironic sign left over from the days the pub functioned as a business, telling patrons that there was ‘a zero drugs policy on these premises.’
Chief Inspector Claire Galt of Neighbourhoods and Partnerships in Tameside led the operation.
She said: “I would personally like to thank the local community for coming forwards and making us aware of their concerns surrounding The Church pub.
“We are extremely pleased that this cannabis will not find its way onto the streets of Stalybridge or the wider community.
“The 600/700 plants, worth approximately £350,000, will now be dismantled by the neighbourhood team, for everything to be taken into evidence.
“We would not have been able to achieve this without the help of the Tameside people and we want to let them know that we will always listen to them and act whenever appropriate.”
Sergeant Ben Marsden added: “We found out about this as a neighbourhood team with the support of the community really.
“We obviously really rely on the intelligence we receive and it’s just acting on that, so we appreciate all the information that we do get from the community because these are the results that we do get.
“It just sends the message that it’s unacceptable.
“Obviously, we act on it – we dealt with it accordingly. It could be links to organised crime and it’s just not acceptable in the area, it just brings the area down.”