Police arrest landlord after seizing £400k worth of ...

The landlord of two properties in Coventry has been arrested after police seized cash and drugs worth £400,000.

The money and drugs were discovered during major police raids in Cheylesmore.

Officers from our Binley and Willenhall team raided an address in Glover Street earlier this week and found a haul of cannabis hidden under kitchen floorboards.

According to West Midlands Police, five large holdalls were stuffed with dried cannabis bud in vacuum-packed bags, plus large bundles of cash found dotted around the house.

Two men aged 24 and 36, one living in Coventry and the other from London, were arrested on suspicion of possessing drugs with intent to supply.

The landlord of the property has now been was traced to an address in Heather Road, Binley Woods, where he was arrested for money laundering and drug supply.

Enquiries at another property owned by the 44-year-old landlord, in Ulverscroft Road, Coventry, led to West Midlands Police discovering another stash of cannabis in the garage ready for distribution, plus around £5,000 in cash hidden under a bed.

Two more men, aged 26 and 23, were arrested from that address on suspicion of cannabis cultivation and immigration offences.

The operation netted drugs and cash with a total value believed to be around £400,000.

Sgt Deb Walker, said: “It appears we’ve disrupted a very large drugs operation with a rogue landlord suspected of using his property portfolio for drugs production and supply.

“We initially received community intelligence suggesting a property in Ulverscroft Road was being used to grow cannabis. We raided it on July 24 and found 400 cannabis plants.

“A total of seven addresses owned by the same landlord have now been searched across Coventry.

“We suspect the addresses and the drugs are linked to wider organised crime and enquiries are progressing with our gangs unit to understand the full extent of the operation.

“There is also evidence that illegal immigrants are being used and exploited to grow and package drugs.”

All of the men arrested have been released under investigation while police enquiries continue.

Want to comment on this story? Our focus is on providing a platform for you to share your insights and views and we welcome contributions.
If any post is considered to victimise, harass, degrade or intimidate an individual or group of individuals, then the post may be deleted and the individual immediately banned from posting in future.
Please help us by reporting comments you consider to be unduly offensive so we can review and take action if necessary. Thank you.

Peter Merrick
11 September 2020 10:13 AM

In the article it specifically mentioned that he misused his position as a landlord to carry out criminal activities. By the sounds of it he was using his tenants to produce the drugs and then profited off of them. So there is an issue here of tenancy exploitation.

Robert Brown
11 September 2020 11:28 AM

Peter

That's like saying members of a criminal gang are exploiting each other! It might true in some county lines drug couriers but criminals usually know exactly what they're getting into, tenant or landlord alike.

The article also specifically mentioned that the abuse of the accomplices was evidently due to their being illegal immigrants - who clearly couldn't be accommodated by any law abiding landlord.

The guy is not a typical landlord any more than a getaway driver is a typical motorist!