POT HOUSES PUT CHILDREN AT RISK

Youngsters Found in Two of Three Mountain Grow House Busts Last
Week

He was no more than two years old, naked and confined to a room soaked
with urine and scattered with feces.

The little boy was one of three people found by police at a marijuana
grow house on Upper Gage near Mohawk that was busted July 14, one of
three grow house raids that occurred on the Mountain that day.

"We find children in all areas of the house," said Det. Paul
Henderson, a member of the so-called Green Team within the vice and
drug branch of the Hamilton Police Service that investigates and raids
marijuana grow houses in the city. "We have hundreds and hundreds of
tips in our office right now."

As with all children under 14 who are found inside a grow house, the
little boy was turned over to Children's Aid.

So far this year, police have shut down 58 grow houses, 18 of them on
the Mountain and delivered 19 youngsters to child welfare officials.

Det. Henderson noted children in grow houses are at risk not only from
the chemicals and often dangerous electrical hook-ups that are used to
grow the dope but from the threat of armed home invasion by thieves
looking to rip off the marijuana or any available cash on hand

"People know you're growing marijuana, it's usually not a very well
kept secret and the chance of being ripped off if very high," said
Det. Henderson, who noted an unloaded shotgun and a couple of shotgun
shells, along with a syringe, marijuana joints and a quantity of pills
were among the items found in the home on Upper Gage.

Police were called to the Upper Gage home around 9:15 p.m. to assist
an animal control officer who was attempting to return a stray pitbull
to the address. The animal control officer was directed to the home by
neighbours.

When a knock on the front door failed to get a response, police went
to the back of the home where they found a rotwieller in the yard. At
that point officers spotted the naked boy peering out at them from a
second floor window.

After further knocking failed to garner a response, police entered the
home through the unlocked front door. Under the Child and Family
Services Act, police have the authority to rescue any youngsters they
believe may be in danger.

Police found the shotgun in the living room and the shells in the
kitchen. An adult male and female were found sound asleep in a
upstairs bedroom. The boy was found in the next bedroom where the door
had been secured from the outside by a safety chain.

A check of the basement netted police 25 marijuana plants and about
$4,000 worth of growing equipment.

Det. Henderson noted the grow operation was poorly ventilated and
hooked to a stove plug which also presented a fire hazard.

Around 4 p.m. that day police raided a home on West 5th near Tyrone
Drive and at 8:45 p.m. they busted a grow operation at a house on
Upper Sherman near Park Plaza.

Three children, ages one, six and 10 were found in the Upper Sherman
home along with three adults, 451 marijuana plants in the basement and
$15,000 worth of growing equipment.

Confiscated growing equipment will eventually be turned over to
federal authorities.

At the Upper Sherman house police confiscated 274 marijuana plants
from the basement and $15,000 worth of growing equipment. An adult
male and female were arrested at the scene. The couple were spotted
attempting to leave the home in a pick-up truck moments before the
raid.

Det. Henderson said the adults arrested at the West 5th and Upper
Sherman homes were members of the same family and the two operations
are linked to a grow house on East 19th that police busted on July 7,
netting 557 marijuana plants.

"One big happy family," said Det. Henderson, who noted police were
informed about the East 19th operation through a CrimeStoppers tip.

The street value of the dope confiscated by police last week topped
$1.2 million.

"It's a cash crop," Det. Henderson said. "A lot of money is there to
be made."

In most cases marijuana is grown in three stages. There is the clone
or clipping stage which lasts about four weeks, the vegetative plant
stage that lasts about six weeks and the flowering plant stage that
runs another six weeks.

A reasonably efficient growing operation can produce buds every six
weeks, Det. Henderson said. Once the buds are picked, growers will
take clones or trimmings from the plant and start another growing cycle.

Det. Henderson said each plant produces at least three ounces of bud
and each plant is worth about $3,000 on the street.

Buds from the crops are usually placed in half-pound or one pound bags
and distributed to dealers through an organized crime network, Det.
Henderson said.

In 2003 police shut down 115 grow houses in Hamilton and Det..
Henderson expects they'll do at least that many this year. In most
cases the Green Team will hit three or four houses on the same day.

"It seems like there's one (grow house) on every street," said Det.
Henderson.

Most of the local pot, also known as B.C. bud, is destined for the
United States.

"It's not staying local," said Det. Henderson. "If it was staying
local people would be walking around with garbage bags (full of
marijuana) because there's that much of it."

In recent months police have noticed grow houses springing up in
smaller lower city homes rather than larger homes on the Mountain and
in Ancaster.

"In the past they might have let's say one house on the west Mountain
that can house 1,000 plants," Det. Henderson said. "(Now) what they're
doing is getting three houses down in the central area where they're
getting 500 plants per house. They're still getting the same number of
plants but they're getting more houses now."

Using more homes also increases a grower's chances of getting caught,
Det. Henderson said.

Smaller grow operations also means less equipment is required. Det.
Henderson noted they are now seeing grow houses where the operators
use the existing electrical hook ups rather than steal power by
tapping into a home's hydro line and bypass the meter.

"Now-a-days they're getting $1,000 hydro bills and they're paying
them," said Det. Henderson.

He added Hamilton Hydro alerts police to homes where an unusual amount
of electricity is being used.

Along with the local utilities Det. Henderson said tips about grow
houses also come in from CrimeStoppers, neighbours, patrol officers
and real estate agents.

Tell-tale signs that a house is being used for a marijuana grow
operation include:

* little activity around the home and what activity there is takes
place late at night;

* little or no garbage is put out;

* windows are open while the air conditioning is running;

* windows are closed and no air conditioning is running;

* heavy condensation on the windows;

* children's toys are left in front of the home but no children are
ever seen.

"It seems like there's one (grow house) on every street"

Det. Paul Henderson