Drugs factory found at Swancote Country Club

A £25,000 cannabis factory hidden behind a fake wall was discovered in a raid on a country club near Bridgnorth today.

The drugs were found behind the wall and beneath a trapdoor at Swancote Country Club.

A team of 11 officers swooped on the Bridgnorth Road club just after 8am. They smashed through the false wall to discover a trapdoor leading down the cellar, where 50 mature and 40 juvenile plants were found.

A man has been arrested on suspicion of cultivating cannabis.

It is the second time in six months that police have raided the premises.

Sgt Bob Matthews, of Bridgnorth Police, who conducted the raid, said officers had acted on a tip-off.

He said: "We received fresh information about cannabis still being grown at the address so we executed a warrant and carried out an extensive search of the country club itself, including the bar area and it was there we discovered a trapdoor camouflaged by a false wall.

"We found £25,000 worth of cannabis, which included around 50 mature and 40 juvenile plants.

"It's a good yield to have found and we want to assure the public we do act on the information that is given to us."

Sgt Matthews said it was while carrying out an extensive search of the bar area that they came across the "suspicious" looking wall.

He said: "There were shelves on the wall but the items were glued down. We then noticed the wall had been covered in masking tape, with dust sprinkled over it.

"When we knocked on the wall we heard an echo and realised it was hollow so knocked it down and that led to a trap door. Once we opened that it led to a cellar, which is where we found the cultivation room. It was all kitted out and the electrical equipment alone must have run into the thousands of pounds."

The investigation is now continuing.