'Albanian criminality' linked to South Yorkshire cannabis farms, warns top cop

A senior police officer with South Yorkshire Police has answered questions about the linked between 'Albanian criminality' and South Yorkshire cannabis farms, warning that there are a 'growing number of individuals from the Western Balkan region showing up in our criminal justice system'.

The comments have been made by Detective Superintendent Martin Tate, in response to questions from The Star concerning the growing number of Albanian defendants being brought to justice at Sheffield Crown Court for production of cannabis and associated offences - as well as what the force is doing to combat the apparent rise in such cases.

Det Supt Tate said: “There is a growing number of individuals from Albania and other countries in the Western Balkan region showing up in our criminal justice system, charged with offences relating to the production, supply and distribution of drugs. This is a nationally recognised trend and South Yorkshire is no exception.

“This type of criminality, we know, typically forms part of a wider organised criminal network that involves other dangerous crime types including modern slavery and human trafficking, violence, exploitation of vulnerable members of our communities and use of weapons.

“We have invested significant time and resources into understanding the impact that Albanian criminality has on our communities in South Yorkshire. We see both residential and commercial premises being used for cannabis cultivations and often these involve the dangerous bypassing of electrical supply, which places those within the property (who may well be victims of cuckooing or modern slavery) at risk, as well as any neighbouring properties.

“Our force played a role in the recent national operation to target organised criminal groups and cannabis cultivations. Across the Yorkshire and Humber region, this saw cannabis worth over £5.3million seized. In South Yorkshire, we executed 49 warrants, seizing over 7,000 cannabis plants and arresting 41 people for a variety of offences.

“National operations happen in conjunction with our own operational activity, and our communities can rest assured that we have officers and staff in South Yorkshire working extremely hard to develop and analyse information about drug-related crime and organised crime, before carrying out targeted and decisive action to disrupt those criminal networks.”