DEALERS USE SNAKES TO GUARD DRUG CACHES

A DETECTIVE told yesterday how snakes and tropical spiders were sometimes
used to guard drugs in dealers' homes. Chief Inspector Annette Pollock gave
evidence at the High Court in Edinburgh where fellow officers are on trial
accused of perjury.

She said she had previously encountered snakes which had to be removed
before their tank could be searched. Pollock, 54, added that she had also
heard of spiders being kept for the same reason.

Five Strathclyde officers deny lying on oath about a drug raid almost nine
years ago, during which heroin dealer Gerald Rae said he was beaten with
baseball bats and pick- axe handles. Rae, 41, was found dead last month in
Glasgow after suffering a suspected drugs overdose.

Pollock yesterday said officers did not take weapons on raids to deal with
dealers' dangerous dogs, although she admitted the animals could prove "a
nightmare" to deal with.

One of the officers on trial, Detective Inspector Ian McBain, 48, has told
the court he would sometimes take a pick-axe handle with him if he knew
there was a vicious dog in a dealer's house.

The others in the dock are Detective Constables John Kelly, 37, and James
Dinnen, 41, and Detective Inspectors Frank Thom, 47, and John Pollock, 50,
who is no relation to Annette Pollock. The trial continues.