SOURCE: London Free Press

CONTACT: letters@lfpress.com

POLICE ISSUE PLEA FOR HELP FINDING MARIJUANA PLANTS

The pot plants are often grown in farm fields amid
other crops and now is the time of year they're
harvested.

By John Hamilton, Free Press Reporter

CHATHAM Drug squad police appealed Wednesday for public help in
locating hidden marijuana crops across Southwestern Ontario as they
displayed their latest haul of the illegal cash crop.

Chatham Det.Sgt. Dennis Poole said it's likely there are other major
marijuana plantings in area crops, fields and bush lots.

"People should be vigilant and report anything suspicious they see to
police," he said.

STREET VALUE

Police say the 205 plants they seized in Dover Township on Tuesday
would have had a potential street value of as much as $2.7 million if
the crop were processed.

Drug squad officers found the plants being cultivated on farmland and
ditch areas northwest of Chatham on Bear Line Road near Mud Creek
Line after a tip.

ONE OPERATION

"The plants were in three separate but nearby locations and we're
convinced they were planted in one operation," Poole said.

He said no arrests have been made but police are following "a series
of leads."

Describing the find as "significant, an excellent seizure,'' Poole
said the plants were nearly mature.

September is the traditional month to reap marijuana crops so people
should be alert "for any unusual activity in rural areas."

Poole said Kent, Lambton and Essex counties are prime areas for
marijuana crops "because of the long growing season."

Similar efforts to crimp the marijuana harvest are under way in
Middlesex, Elgin and Oxford counties, where police seized more than
3,600 plants last year.

The Marijuana Eradication Program, a joint OPPRCMP operation, will
have about 35 officers searching the three counties this year.

USING HELP

The OPP has schooled flyingclub members and commercial airline
employees in spotting marijuana from the sky.

Using amateur and professional flyers in the search is part of the
OPP's communitybased policing program.

Police also rely on tips from the public, often from farmers who
discover marijuana growing in their fields.