HEAT-LOSS HOME SPARKS 'CANNABIS FACTORY' RAID

A WOMAN police officer's house was raided after a helicopter's
infra-red camera spotted it as a suspected cannabis factory.

The home was emitting so much heat, officers thought it could be
cultivating large quantities of the drug.

Police swooped on the house and the reason for the blazing heat became
clear - not drug production but insufficient insulation.

Sawston police community support officer (PCSO) Zally Huseyen said the
problem was caused because of poor quality workmanship on her new home.

The Cambridgeshire helicopter was on an unrelated mission when its
camera homed in on the house in Lower Cambourne.

Officers later discovered the new UKP400,000 house was pouring out
extreme heat because it was so poorly insulated, claimed the mother of
five.

The 46-year-old told the News about the police raid and how her "dream
home" turned into a nightmare.

She said: "It was so embarrassing when we were raided. I saw the
police car pull up and knew the sergeant.

"She recognised me when I answered the door. She was shocked and said
three times, 'This is your house?'

"They showed me the footage from the helicopter and I couldn't believe
it."

The defects in the Barrett home, which was built by David Wilson Homes
five years ago, has cost the PCSO thousands of pounds since moving in
a year ago.

The PCSO claims bodges include extractor fans that blow instead of
suck, windows fitted the wrong way round, bags of cement and nails
buried in the garden, a garage that floods regularly and shifting bricks.

Builders also failed to paint the wooden slatted house with fireproof
paint. When they came to rectify the fault they just turned the slats
around.

And because of poor insulation, the house pours out
heat.

In cannabis "factories" fluorescent bulbs are used to grow the drug,
which needs at least eight hours of daylight and temperatures of 15C.

Mrs Huseyen said: "The things they have done are a joke but they are
not funny. I have been told they will do nothing about it as the
warranty ran out two years ago."

David Bell, managing director for David Wilson Homes South Midlands,
said: "All David Wilson homes are built to the highest specification
and in accordance with all energy efficiency legislation and
regulations.

"Each home undergoes a thorough independent inspection before being
occupied.

"Since being contacted by Mrs Zally Huseyen regarding concerns over
the energy efficiency of her home at Monksfield we have conducted
additional investigations, including checking the insulation of the
property, which found that the home complies with all the relevant
standards."