Police raid drugs farm rigged with 'booby traps' and barricaded doors

Cannabis farms filled with hundreds of plants were uncovered after police raids which saw officers overcome a ‘booby trap’ and battle through barricaded doors.
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Durham Constabulary carried out five drugs warrants at addresses in East Durham officers said they had information to suggest they were connected to a suspected drug-dealing gang.

The force has said despite “heavily barricaded doors and a suspected booby trap,” officers discovered two large cannabis farms inside the addresses.

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More than 200 cannabis plants were seized and the electricity meters in the properties were also found to have been bypassed.

Durham Constabulary found 200 cannabis plants inside an East Durham property as a result of searches.Durham Constabulary found 200 cannabis plants inside an East Durham property as a result of searches.
Durham Constabulary found 200 cannabis plants inside an East Durham property as a result of searches.

Two men, found in separate properties in Easington Colliery and Murton, were arrested and appeared at Peterlee Magistrates’ Court yesterday.

Eliot Muhometaj, 19, of Thorpe Street, Easington Colliery, was charged with the cultivation of cannabis and abstracting electricity.

Nestor Metaliaj, 36, of Woods Terrace, Murton, was also charged with cultivating cannabis.

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The men were remanded into custody and will next appear at Durham Crown Court on Tuesday, June 16.

Detective Inspector Mel Sutherland, of Durham Constabulary, thanked the public for their help in reporting suspicious activity.

He said: “Illegal drugs can ruin lives and we will always act on intelligence to target gangs who bring drugs into our communities.

“There are often issues around trafficking and modern-day slavery connected to these incidents and we will continue to do everything we can to dismantle these gangs and help potential victims.”

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The drugs farm is the latest to be found by officers in East Durham.

Thirteen men have been charged in relation to that inquiry.

Eight men have been charged in relation to that investigation.

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Police said at the time that the plants were at various stages of maturity, but had the potential to be worth several hundred thousand pounds.

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