Essex Police chief admits Colchester's cannabis 'problem'

But Ben-Julian Harrington admitted the Class B drug is becoming an “increasing problem” on the streets of Colchester.

It follows several raids which took place in the city where officers busted a cannabis factory in Rowhedge Road and seized a quantity of the drug at an address in Holman Crescent.

Mr Harrington said: “Cannabis seems to be an increasing problem. The rights and wrongs of whether it should or shouldn’t be illegal is a matter for the politicians.

Coup - a total of 500 cannabis plants worth more than £250,000 was found by the police in Colchester (Image: Colchester Community Policing Team)

“The fact is it is illegal; its supply and use is illegal and I have certainly seen, and my officers have seen, the harm that results from both the use and supply of cannabis.

“We know there are organised criminals involved in the supply of cannabis across this county and in Colchester and we will continue to tackle those.”

The Essex Police chief hailed the force’s Operation Raptor teams for their work in cracking down on drugs across the county.

He said there is “an extensive amount of work” to tackle drugs supply and associated violence in Colchester.

Concerned - Chief Constable Ben-Julian Harrington said cannabis is becoming an 'increasing problem' in Colchester (Image: Essex Police)

Mr Harrington said recent raids in the city came following a month-long operation into the supply of cannabis here.

“We continue to dismantle the lines and we continue to put people in prison for a significant amount of time for dealing things like crack cocaine and heroin too,” added Mr Harrington.

He also called on residents to contact his officers if they became suspicious about a property in their community.

Unmoved - Mr Harrington said debating whether cannabis should be illegal or not 'is a matter for the politicians' (Image: Newsquest)

The police chief revealed his own mother had called him asking for help after she correctly suspected someone living near her was cultivating cannabis.

Appealing to the public, Mr Harrington added: “The people in the community can play a real role in letting us know where these things are happening.”

He said the telltale signs a cannabis grow could be taking place near them includes extra electrical wires, heat coming from the property and the sound of fans.