GROW HOUSES STILL OPERATING

Halton police ask residents to report suspicious neighbourhood activity

Recent raids on hydroponics grow houses in Halton mean significant dents
are being made into the highly-lucrative home-grown marijuana business.

But Halton police say grow houses are still operating in the region and
encourage residents to report any suspicious activity in their
neighbourhoods to them.

"It's been pretty active in the GTA for 18 months to two years,' Det. Larry
Burns of the police's narcotics unit said. "It's so lucrative. Some of
these houses we're getting are going undetected; they're harvesting three
to four times per year."

Burns and his unit successfully raided a number of houses in Halton
recently. Inside the houses officers found as many as 500 plants growing
under hydroponic light systems. In some cases hydro meters had been
tampered with, giving the growers access to unlimited power without being
easily detected by a utility company.

Burns says grow houses are often located in heavily-populated, middle class
neighbourhoods in the region. He adds there are a number of clues residents
can use to determine if a grow house is operating in their neighbourhood
including:

* houses with covered windows;

* unusual noises such as hammering or drilling into the basement foundation;

* little or no garbage being put out;

* houses where individuals show up to shovel snow or cut grass then leave
immediately;

* people bringing into the house unusual objects like bags of soil and
potting plants

Police say other suspicious activity not usually associated with a
neighbourhood may also indicate a grow house operation.

Burns adds tips from the public often assist police in learning of grow
house operations and each time they raid a house it has a significant
effect on the illegal drug trade.

'If we're getting 500 plants we're definitely taking a lot of marijuana off
the street, there's no doubt about that," Burns said. "We've taken off in
excess of $7 million in Halton just in the last year."

Residents wanting to report suspicious neighbourhood activity can call
Crime Stoppers at 905-825-8477.