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news
Essex Police: Deputy Chief Constable Andy Bliss with Operation Velo 2010Pedalling policemen put stop to pot production
Yesterday, we reported on Essex Police’s Operation Velo initiative that has put Bobbies back on their bikes in Southend – and the cycling cops have wasted no time in sniffing out crime and feeling some collars.
On Sunday evening, PC Paul Sheldrake and PCSO Luke Gamman, both members of the Operation Velo team, were patrolling the Woodgrange Estate on their bicycles when they smelt something suspicious.
Following his nose – literally – PC Sheldrake tracked the pungent aroma to an address on Woodgrange Drive, where he discovered a cannabis factory.
According to local newspaper the Echo, four men in their twenties were arrested on suspicion of cultivating cannabis, two from Southend and two from London. Some 4 cannabis plants were also seized.
Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.
Latest Comments
- Chris RideFar 2 hours 55 min ago
I know that in independent tests on 10 and 11 speed chains, the SRAM chains always came out bottom in terms of drivetrain efficiency. Lots of...
- quiff 3 hours 1 min ago
The comparison was between two things never intended to be used on a bike.
- perce 3 hours 32 min ago
You could get knocked down at midnight and the jury would believe a driver who said the sun was in his eyes.
- Simon E 3 hours 47 min ago
We'll have to disagree. It's as ugly as f..k. You can try putting lipstick on a pig but it's always going to be a pig....
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Well, send us a review when you've cycled it!...
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Two things are certain about the anti-cyclists, they are stupid and make up facts.
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Funnily enough, my experience with Wahoo TCKR is that when that needed a new battery, it would also go in the bin. The battery locating tabs would...
- Backladder 5 hours 42 min ago
Since the driver used similar language it in not "likely" that he was caused harrasment alarm or distress by having it returned to him. (IANAL)
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Some more local knowledge :...
- eburtthebike 10 hours 49 min ago
“There is a road safety emergency in our region. As Mayor, I’m committed to tackling this issue."...
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5 comments
Just goes to help the case that taking coppers out of their tin boxes and putting them back on the streets, either on foot or bike, gets them closer to the people and more aware of their surroundings.
Four plants?- I thought from your headline they'd nabbed Mr Big or Mr Nice; do you have a friend in the Essex Police press office?
It does show the advantage of not being cocooned from the world in a car though, I suppose.
Is there anywhere you can report these vehicles and the drivers to the police?
I followed a Council recycling collection van in Bristol for 3 miles or so a while back and there was a very pungent aroma of cannabis coming from the vehicle - I made a point not to overtake.
Perhaps pot sniffing cycle cops could also crack down on drivers. I'd just reached the end of my road this morning when I came up behind the first, a bloke in a white Mercedes van. I overtook the second on the South Circular, being already aware of what he was doing and having made sure I had plenty of room. On average I pass about two drivers/day smoking cannabis while behind the wheel. Cops in patrol cars would never know.
This is a serious safety problem in the UK. At the moment the authorities do not have drug testing kits for drivers either. There is widespread research showing that drivers who smoke cannabis while driving present similar risks to drink drivers. There is also research suggesting that drivers who smoke cannabis at the wheel are more likely to be involved in accidents, drive defective vehicles, have no insurance, MOT or current/valid licence and be connected with criminal behvaiour of one sort or another.