Police discovered a cannabis factory with about 2,000 plants growing over three floors of a building in The Maltings, Westbury, late on Friday night, 7 January 2022[1]. Officers were alerted after a vehicle hit an electricity pylon and caught fire; when the fire service and the electricity company arrived, they found cables running into a nearby building and called the police[1]. Wiltshire Police then worked to make the site safe and removed the plants for incineration[1].
Value and investigation
Police estimated the crop’s street value at up to £2 million[1]. A month later the force confirmed to the Westbury Area Board that the “large and professional” site held over 2,000 plants in various stages of growth[2]. No arrests had been made when the find was announced, and Central CID opened an investigation to identify those behind the operation, appealing for information under crime reference 54220002145[1][2].
Organised crime link
Inspector Al Lumley of the Warminster community policing team said operations of this kind were usually linked to organised crime, and urged residents to report suspicious comings and goings at similar sites[1]. Detective Sergeant Andy Morley said detectives were carrying out house-to-house enquiries with people living nearby[1].
