Hartlepool cannabis crackdown sees £12m seizure of drugs, cash and weapons

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A team of police in Hartlepool tasked with a crackdown on cannabis farms have seized £12 million worth of drugs, cash and weapons in a little over two years.

In September 2022, Sergeant Tony Snow and a team of officers from Hartlepool’s Neighbourhoods Team were tasked with uncovering cannabis farms in the town.

Since then, the team have carried out 52 complex investigations including getting search warrants, raiding target suspicious properties, and arresting suspects.

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The force says by gathering intelligence including “vital information on suspicious activity” from the community and other tactics, they have arrested more than 50 people.

Hartlepool District Commander, Superintendent Alan O’Donoghue (inset) and a cannabis plant.Hartlepool District Commander, Superintendent Alan O’Donoghue (inset) and a cannabis plant.
Hartlepool District Commander, Superintendent Alan O’Donoghue (inset) and a cannabis plant.

They have also seized £12 million pounds worth of cannabis and other drugs and removed a host of dangerous weapons such as knives, swords and machetes, from the streets.

Hartlepool District Commander Superintendent Alan O’Donoghue said: “This work has not only removed drugs and weapons from the streets of Hartlepool, but has disrupted organised criminal activities, reducing crime across the town.”

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The most recent major find was a large cannabis farm estimated to be worth £1.3 million on the Graythorp Industrial Estate in November.

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Five men have since been charged with production of cannabis and have appeared at court.

Another farm worth £700,000 was discovered on the top floor of a property in York Road in the town centre in February 2023.

The electrical set up in the room where the drugs were being grown was so hot that officers had to leave.

And a £350,000 growth was found in Stanhope Avenue, off Park Road, in October 2022 where the criminals had wired the production equipment to a streetlight.

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