Police smash their way into suspected drugs den By Miles Godfrey
Comment | Read Comments (16)

Police used a two tonne tractor to smash their way into a suspected
cannabis café tonight.

Officers mounted the surprise operation on the fortified building in
Freshbrook Road, Lancing, just before 6pm.

Using the agricultural vehicle they tore down the wall of the café, which
officers say has been used as a drugs den for a number of months, and
poured through the opening.

Tonight 15 people found inside the premises were being questioned by
detectives on suspicion of drugs offences.

A fingertip search of the building was also being carried out in a bid to
establish what substances were present.

Police raided the café in July and made three arrests and seized a small
quantity of cannabis along with cash.

During that raid a large plume of smoke was seen rising from a chimney as
officers used a battering ram to break in. A similar plume was spotted
tonight.

Adur district commander Chief Inspector Lawrence Hobbs said: "We first
visited here on July 19 and since then we have been building up a case for
the Crown Prosecution Service.

"We've raided the place again really to undermine our determination to
close it down and also to gather further evidence.

"There's been a lot of public support for what we are doing this evening.

"This sends a message that we are not going to tolerate open-air
drug-dealing."

The café, which is around 50 metres down a slip road off Freshbrook Road,
was fortified with metal poles and tyres. CCTV cameras linked to a
television inside were clearly visible.

Ch Insp Hobbs said further results of the raid would be made public
tomorrow.

Visit our website tomorrow to see video footage of the raid and the full
length interview with Ch Insp Hobbs.

For more information about crime in your area visit
localinfo.theargus.co.uk.



http://www.theargus.co.uk/news/localnews/display.var.1754668.0.police_smash_their_way_into_suspected_drugs_den.php


-- 
Dr John Watson
Baker Street

Noticed at Fri, 12 Oct 2007 10:22:43 +0100: Dr John Watson informed us:

> "There's been a lot of public support for what we are doing this
> evening.

If you read the comments to this story from people who live near the place
you will find that that is a lie.

There's also a comment from somebody who was present in the premises
describing how their lives were put at risk by plod smashing their way in.

-- 
Dr John Watson
Baker Street

On Fri, 12 Oct 2007 10:22:43 +0100, Dr John Watson
 wrote:

> "We've raided the place again really to undermine our determination to
> close it down

Hmm.

Tony

"Anthony R. Gold"  wrote:

>> "We've raided the place again really to undermine our determination to
>> close it down
>
>Hmm.
>
>Tony



LOL!





--
S i g n a l @ l i n e o n e . n e t

Signal wrote:
> "Anthony R. Gold"  wrote:
> 
>>> "We've raided the place again really to undermine our determination to
>>> close it down
>> Hmm.
>>
>> Tony
> 
> 
> 
> LOL!
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> --
> S i g n a l @ l i n e o n e . n e t

Even better  is:

"Police used a two tonne tractor to smash their way into a suspected
cannabis café tonight.

Using the agricultural vehicle they tore down the wall of the café, 
which officers say has been used as a drugs den for a number of months, 
and poured through the opening.

"This sends a message that we are not going to tolerate open-air
drug-dealing."

Well, it wasn't "open-air" until they smashed the walls down.


-- 
Moving things in still pictures!

On Sun, 14 Oct 2007 09:37:32 +0000, ®i©ardo wrote:

> Using the agricultural vehicle they tore down the wall of the café, which
> officers say has been used as a drugs den for a number of months, and
> poured through the opening.

Presumably, this premises is rented or leased by the operators of the
cafe. Who is going to pay for the repairs?

I note from a comment to this story in The Argos that somebody inside the
cafe was injured by flying glass. Health and safety concerns?

-- 
Phil Stovell, Hampshire, UK

On Sun, 14 Oct 2007 09:37:32 GMT, ®i©ardo  wrote:

>Signal wrote:
>> "Anthony R. Gold"  wrote:
>> 
>>>> "We've raided the place again really to undermine our determination to
>>>> close it down
>>> Hmm.
>
>Even better  is:
>
>"Police used a two tonne tractor to smash their way into a suspected
>cannabis café tonight.
>
>Using the agricultural vehicle they tore down the wall of the café, 
>which officers say has been used as a drugs den for a number of months, 
>and poured through the opening.

Wonder how many of them would have faced manslaughter charges if
someone had been killed. Knocking down a wall could have brought the
whole building down. Anyone for a trial of the officers concerned on
health and safety charges?
>
>"This sends a message that we are not going to tolerate open-air
>drug-dealing."
>
>Well, it wasn't "open-air" until they smashed the walls down.

Police vow on fortress "cannabis cafe" Comment | Read Comments (19)

A controvesial "cannabis cafe" has reopened just days after police used a
tractor to smash their way in.

During the dramatic raid the side of the building collapsed while people
were still inside.

Now the owner of the cafe, which police believe is being used to sell
cannabis, has tried to turn it into an impregnable fortress. 

He has stacked car tyres filled with concrete around the building in
Freshbrook Road, Lancing, and installed razor wire to deter intruders.

A spokesman for the owner, who did not want to be identified, said: "We
were back up and running within days of the police raid."

One of those inside at the time said: "It was like something out of a
Bruce Willis film. Somebody could have very easily been very badly hurt of
even killed."

Another said: "It could have easily collapsed completely with everyone
inside it. As it was people did get minor injuries, bumps and bruises, and
one woman suffered an asthma attack."

But police were unapologetic about the estimated £20,000 worth of damage
caused to the building when the tractor pulled away a window so officers
could gain entry.

And they vowed to step up the pressure in a bid to close the cafe once and
for all.

Chief Inspector Lawrence Hobbs, Adur district police commander, said the
building's previous defences forced his officers to use the tractor.

He said: "We have held meetings with the local residents and they clearly
want us to close this place down.

"With the fortifications that have been made, at great expense, our
options were diminishing. That meant we had to take the relatively drastic
action of employing a tractor during the last raid.

"We considered the health and safety implications very carefully and were
confident nobody would be hurt, and nobody was.

"We are not deterred by the owners' latest comments or their
refortifications. We will continue to execute warrants as and when we feel
it is necessary.

"There has to be a recognition that these types of illegal enterprises
will not be tolerated.

"This is not about recreational drug use on a minor scale. We are not
talking about an individual having a quiet joint in their own home.

"We are talking about 30 or 40 people in one place, many of them from out
of town. We are also tackling the people who are profiting ffrom thousands
of pounds a week from the proceeds of crime."

3:24pm Sunday 21st October 2007

http://www.theargus.co.uk/news/localnews/display.var.1775522.0.police_vow_on_fortress_cannabis_cafe.php

-- 
Dr John Watson
Baker Street

In uk.legal on Mon, 22 Oct 2007, Dr John Watson 
 wrote :
>
>A controvesial "cannabis cafe" has reopened just days after police used a
>tractor to smash their way in.
>
>During the dramatic raid the side of the building collapsed while people
>were still inside.
>
>Now the owner of the cafe, which police believe is being used to sell
>cannabis, has tried to turn it into an impregnable fortress.
>
>He has stacked car tyres filled with concrete around the building in
>Freshbrook Road, Lancing, and installed razor wire to deter intruders.
>
>A spokesman for the owner, who did not want to be identified, said: "We
>were back up and running within days of the police raid."
>
>One of those inside at the time said: "It was like something out of a
>Bruce Willis film. Somebody could have very easily been very badly hurt of
>even killed."
>
>Another said: "It could have easily collapsed completely with everyone
>inside it. As it was people did get minor injuries, bumps and bruises, and
>one woman suffered an asthma attack."
>
>But police were unapologetic about the estimated £20,000 worth of damage
>caused to the building when the tractor pulled away a window so officers
>could gain entry.
>
>And they vowed to step up the pressure in a bid to close the cafe once and
>for all.

I assume they could still be sued if someone died during another attempt 
to force entry, though?
>
>http://www.theargus.co.uk/news/localnews/display.var.1775522.0.police_vo
>w_on_fortress_cannabis_cafe.php
>

-- 
Paul Hyett, Cheltenham

Cannabis cafe' puts up the barricades 

The downgrading of cannabis to a class C drug has led to a series of
cannabis cafés opening across Sussex. Police have faced an uphill battle
trying to close these illegal premises.

Reporter Miles Godfrey visited an alleged cannabis café in Lancing raided
by officers only last week and found a steely determination to defy the
authorities. A cafe which police believe is being used to sell cannabis
has reopened after new defences were installed.

Officers smashed their way into the building in Freshbrook Road, Lancing,
on October 11 using a two-tonne tractor.

They demolished a wall as they ripped a window from its frame and
allegedly caused about £20,000 damage to the building and its interior.

However in a show of defiance, the café's operators have rebuilt the
wall, fortified the building and reopened for business in under five days.
advertisement

The Argus gained exclusive access to the café and inspected the new
defences. They include: # Military razor wire.

# Reinforced steel girders used as height-restriction barriers to prevent
tall vehicles gaining access.

# Steel posts and concretefilled tyres surrounding the building.

A spokesman for the owner, who did not want to be identified, said: "We
are back up and running. We were within days of the police raid."

The people who run the café, which has also been fully repaired and
redecorated inside, claimed the police's "heavyhanded"

tactics in smashing through the wall could have led to serious injuries.

One said: "We don't believe they did a proper health and safety check
before the raid.

They have claimed that the building had a steel structure but it doesn't.
It could have easily collapsed completely with everyone inside it.

"As it was, people did get minor injuries, bumps and bruises and one woman
suffered an asthma attack. We are worried about what tactics the police
are going to use next."

Those inside the building said they were horrified when officers pulled
down the wall.

One said: "It was like something out of a Bruce Willis film.

Somebody could have easily been very badly hurt or even killed."

Police said they found a "quantity" of cannabis during the raid. Those at
the café claim less than four grammes was discovered, an amount they said
did not warrant the raid.

The spokesman said: "The police caused about £20,000 damage inside and
out during the operation. They employed numerous officers, hired a tractor
and for what? They only found four grammes of cannabis so what was the
point?"

Officers also found £2,000 in cash on the premises during the raid. The
spokesman said the money was from the till and fruit machine and the rest
belonged to four different people.

A strict over-18s policy remains in force and staff said they operated a
strict ban on alcohol.

The raid was the latest in a series of battles police have had with
similar businesses.

Officers have carried out a series of raids across Worthing and Lancing in
the last few years as outlets allegedly selling cannabis have sprung up.

Many raids have been successful but others, like the one on October 11 in
Lancing, turned up only small quantities of cannabis.

In August, 2005, more than 40 police officers were involved in a dramatic
siege at premises in Victoria Road, Worthing. The officers, including a
dozen riot police, forced their way through two 6in-thick reinforced doors
using steel-cutting welders and a battering ram.

About 30 people were marched outside after police smashed their way into
the building, which subsequently closed.

There were raids at the nowclosed Quantum Leaf and Bongchuffa cannabis
cafés in Rowlands Road, Worthing, in 2003. Pro-cannabis campaigner Chris
Baldwin ran the Quantum Leaf café as a "political statement"

and in January, 2004, received a six-month jail sentence for supplying
cannabis.

He served just over six weeks behind bars.

The alleged cannabis café in Freshbrook Road has also been raided before.

In July this year, officers smashed their way into the building using a
battering ram.

However they recovered only small qualities of the drug.

Thick black smoke was spotted rising from the premises during that raid
and the most recent one.

Officers believe it may have been cannabis being burnt inside but they
have been unable to secure enough evidence to bring charges.

Chief Inspector Lawrence Hobbs, Adur district police commander, said
police did not want to rush in. He said: "It is early days. We want to
gather some evidence, seek some legal advice and listen to how the
community want us to deal with it. I do not sense there's any physical
threat to residents."

However, since February when police first suspected the building was being
for drugsmoking, his stance has toughened significantly.

He was unapologetic about the damage and said: "There has to be
recognition that these types of illegal enterprises will not be
tolerated."

The latest raid was certainly the most dramatic but it may not be the
last.

http://www.theargus.co.uk/news/localnews/display.var.1777072.0.cannabis_cafe_puts_up_the_barricades.php

-- 
Dr John Watson
Baker Street

"Dr John Watson"  wrote in message 
news:5o5rbbFl1lniU1@mid.individual.net...
> Cannabis cafe' puts up the barricades
>
> The downgrading of cannabis to a class C drug has led to a series of
> cannabis cafés opening across Sussex. Police have faced an uphill battle
> trying to close these illegal premises.
>
> Reporter Miles Godfrey visited an alleged cannabis café in Lancing raided
> by officers only last week and found a steely determination to defy the
> authorities. A cafe which police believe is being used to sell cannabis
> has reopened after new defences were installed.
>
> Officers smashed their way into the building in Freshbrook Road, Lancing,
> on October 11 using a two-tonne tractor.
>
> They demolished a wall as they ripped a window from its frame and
> allegedly caused about £20,000 damage to the building and its interior.
>
> However in a show of defiance, the café's operators have rebuilt the
> wall, fortified the building and reopened for business in under five days.
> advertisement
>
> The Argus gained exclusive access to the café and inspected the new
> defences. They include: # Military razor wire.
>
> # Reinforced steel girders used as height-restriction barriers to prevent
> tall vehicles gaining access.
>
> # Steel posts and concretefilled tyres surrounding the building.
>
> A spokesman for the owner, who did not want to be identified, said: "We
> are back up and running. We were within days of the police raid."
>
> The people who run the café, which has also been fully repaired and
> redecorated inside, claimed the police's "heavyhanded"
>
> tactics in smashing through the wall could have led to serious injuries.
>
> One said: "We don't believe they did a proper health and safety check
> before the raid.
>
> They have claimed that the building had a steel structure but it doesn't.
> It could have easily collapsed completely with everyone inside it.
>
> "As it was, people did get minor injuries, bumps and bruises and one woman
> suffered an asthma attack. We are worried about what tactics the police
> are going to use next."
>
> Those inside the building said they were horrified when officers pulled
> down the wall.
>
> One said: "It was like something out of a Bruce Willis film.
>
> Somebody could have easily been very badly hurt or even killed."
>
> Police said they found a "quantity" of cannabis during the raid. Those at
> the café claim less than four grammes was discovered, an amount they said
> did not warrant the raid.
>
> The spokesman said: "The police caused about £20,000 damage inside and
> out during the operation. They employed numerous officers, hired a tractor
> and for what? They only found four grammes of cannabis so what was the
> point?"
>
> Officers also found £2,000 in cash on the premises during the raid. The
> spokesman said the money was from the till and fruit machine and the rest
> belonged to four different people.
>
> A strict over-18s policy remains in force and staff said they operated a
> strict ban on alcohol.
>
> The raid was the latest in a series of battles police have had with
> similar businesses.
>
> Officers have carried out a series of raids across Worthing and Lancing in
> the last few years as outlets allegedly selling cannabis have sprung up.
>
> Many raids have been successful but others, like the one on October 11 in
> Lancing, turned up only small quantities of cannabis.
>
> In August, 2005, more than 40 police officers were involved in a dramatic
> siege at premises in Victoria Road, Worthing. The officers, including a
> dozen riot police, forced their way through two 6in-thick reinforced doors
> using steel-cutting welders and a battering ram.
>
> About 30 people were marched outside after police smashed their way into
> the building, which subsequently closed.
>
> There were raids at the nowclosed Quantum Leaf and Bongchuffa cannabis
> cafés in Rowlands Road, Worthing, in 2003. Pro-cannabis campaigner Chris
> Baldwin ran the Quantum Leaf café as a "political statement"
>
> and in January, 2004, received a six-month jail sentence for supplying
> cannabis.
>
> He served just over six weeks behind bars.
>
> The alleged cannabis café in Freshbrook Road has also been raided before.
>
> In July this year, officers smashed their way into the building using a
> battering ram.
>
> However they recovered only small qualities of the drug.
>
> Thick black smoke was spotted rising from the premises during that raid
> and the most recent one.
>
> Officers believe it may have been cannabis being burnt inside but they
> have been unable to secure enough evidence to bring charges.
>
> Chief Inspector Lawrence Hobbs, Adur district police commander, said
> police did not want to rush in. He said: "It is early days. We want to
> gather some evidence, seek some legal advice and listen to how the
> community want us to deal with it. I do not sense there's any physical
> threat to residents."
>
> However, since February when police first suspected the building was being
> for drugsmoking, his stance has toughened significantly.
>
> He was unapologetic about the damage and said: "There has to be
> recognition that these types of illegal enterprises will not be
> tolerated."
>
> The latest raid was certainly the most dramatic but it may not be the
> last.
>
> http://www.theargus.co.uk/news/localnews/display.var.1777072.0.cannabis_cafe_puts_up_the_barricades.php
>
> -- 
> Dr John Watson
> Baker Street
>
If these premises are so highly fortified, how do the customers and staff 
get in and out?  Surely there must be an access door somewhere.  Why didn't 
the police simply ring the bell or knock?

Terry D

On Tue, 23 Oct 2007 10:38:39 GMT, "Terry D"
 wrote:

>"Dr John Watson"  wrote in message 
>news:5o5rbbFl1lniU1@mid.individual.net...
>> Cannabis cafe' puts up the barricades
>>
>> The downgrading of cannabis to a class C drug has led to a series of
>> cannabis cafés opening across Sussex. Police have faced an uphill battle
>> trying to close these illegal premises.
>>
>> Reporter Miles Godfrey visited an alleged cannabis café in Lancing raided
>> by officers only last week and found a steely determination to defy the
>> authorities. A cafe which police believe is being used to sell cannabis
>> has reopened after new defences were installed.
>>
>> Officers smashed their way into the building in Freshbrook Road, Lancing,
>> on October 11 using a two-tonne tractor.

>If these premises are so highly fortified, how do the customers and staff 
>get in and out?  Surely there must be an access door somewhere.  Why didn't 
>the police simply ring the bell or knock?

Well in the US they could just ask, "Are you police?" And they would
have to answer truthfully. I don't know whether the same rule applies
here.

Noticed at Tue, 23 Oct 2007 17:04:01 +0100: IanAl informed us:

> On Tue, 23 Oct 2007 10:38:39 GMT, "Terry D"
>  wrote:
> 
>>"Dr John Watson"  wrote in message 
>>news:5o5rbbFl1lniU1@mid.individual.net...
>>> Cannabis cafe' puts up the barricades
>>>
>>> The downgrading of cannabis to a class C drug has led to a series of
>>> cannabis cafés opening across Sussex. Police have faced an uphill battle
>>> trying to close these illegal premises.
>>>
>>> Reporter Miles Godfrey visited an alleged cannabis café in Lancing raided
>>> by officers only last week and found a steely determination to defy the
>>> authorities. A cafe which police believe is being used to sell cannabis
>>> has reopened after new defences were installed.
>>>
>>> Officers smashed their way into the building in Freshbrook Road, Lancing,
>>> on October 11 using a two-tonne tractor.
> 
>>If these premises are so highly fortified, how do the customers and staff 
>>get in and out?  Surely there must be an access door somewhere.  Why didn't 
>>the police simply ring the bell or knock?
> 
> Well in the US they could just ask, "Are you police?" And they would
> have to answer truthfully. I don't know whether the same rule applies
> here.

The USA invented the speakeasy, during a previous failed attempt at
prohibition.

-- 
Dr John Watson
Baker Street

<uk.rec.drugs.cannabis>
<Dr John Watson>
<Tue, 23 Oct 2007 20:40:55 +0100>


> The USA invented the speakeasy, during a previous failed attempt at
> prohibition.
> 

Somebody once suggested that it was prohibition that gave the mob a 
starter for ten .

It was also suggested that certain criminals at the time seen the 
potential of being sole suppliers of wanted items & contributed funds to 
help make prohibition happen and become a reality .

So in effect , What was seen by a failure by some was seen as a success 
by others .

Noticed at Tue, 23 Oct 2007 21:18:19 +0100: Krustov informed us:

> Somebody once suggested that it was prohibition that gave the mob a 
> starter for ten .

That's not a suggestion, it's a fact. When vices are banned by a
moralising minority, the black economy always steps in to make up the
shortfall.

> It was also suggested that certain criminals at the time seen the 
> potential of being sole suppliers of wanted items & contributed funds to 
> help make prohibition happen and become a reality .

Yes, enterprises like monopolies, hence takeovers by buying up all the
shares of competitors. Of course, black economy operators do not have
shares, so takeovers are effected in other, more violent, ways. Didn't an
MP have a child murdered in the crossfire of a turf war shooting?

One does wonder where prohibitionist organisations get their funding. The
black market is successful in corrupting law enforcement agencies so it is
no stretch of imagination to suggest they fund prohibitionists.

> So in effect , What was seen by a failure by some was seen as a success 
> by others .

Yes, and governments, led by the USA, continue the failure.

-- 
Dr John Watson
Baker Street

On Tue, 23 Oct 2007 17:04:01 +0100, IanAl  wrote:

>On Tue, 23 Oct 2007 10:38:39 GMT, "Terry D"
> wrote:
>
>>"Dr John Watson"  wrote in message 
>>news:5o5rbbFl1lniU1@mid.individual.net...
>>> Cannabis cafe' puts up the barricades
>>>
>>> The downgrading of cannabis to a class C drug has led to a series of
>>> cannabis cafés opening across Sussex. Police have faced an uphill battle
>>> trying to close these illegal premises.
>>>
>>> Reporter Miles Godfrey visited an alleged cannabis café in Lancing raided
>>> by officers only last week and found a steely determination to defy the
>>> authorities. A cafe which police believe is being used to sell cannabis
>>> has reopened after new defences were installed.
>>>
>>> Officers smashed their way into the building in Freshbrook Road, Lancing,
>>> on October 11 using a two-tonne tractor.
>
>>If these premises are so highly fortified, how do the customers and staff 
>>get in and out?  Surely there must be an access door somewhere.  Why didn't 
>>the police simply ring the bell or knock?
>
>Well in the US they could just ask, "Are you police?" And they would
>have to answer truthfully. I don't know whether the same rule applies
>here.

That is bullshit.

If the police assume(rightly) that answering no to the question will
get them in, they do so.

-- 
SEE YA !!!
Trygve Lillefosse
AKA - Malawi, The Fisher King

Dr John Watson  wrote in
news:5o5rbbFl1lniU1@mid.individual.net: 

[snip]

> "As it was, people did get minor injuries, bumps and bruises and one
> woman suffered an asthma attack.

She probably shouldn't spend time in smokey rooms.

In uk.legal on Wed, 24 Oct 2007, Trygve Lillefosse 
 wrote :
>>
>>Well in the US they could just ask, "Are you police?" And they would
>>have to answer truthfully. I don't know whether the same rule applies
>>here.
>
>That is bullshit.
>
>If the police assume(rightly) that answering no to the question will
>get them in, they do so.
>
Well in that case, ISTM they could blast them with a handy shotgun, 
claiming self defence, as they had been led to believe the intruders 
were *not* police.

Could they convince a jury of that, though...
-- 
Paul Hyett, Cheltenham

On Thu, 25 Oct 2007 08:55:03 GMT, Paul Hyett <pah@invalid.invalid>
wrote:

>Well in that case, ISTM they could blast them with a handy shotgun, 
>claiming self defence, as they had been led to believe the intruders 
>were *not* police.

>Could they convince a jury of that, though...

If I were on the jury, I'd be convinced.

Svenne