Police seized more than 1,400 cannabis seedlings and detained a man operating a cannabis farm on Hehuanshan (合歡山), police in Nantou County’s Jhushan Township (竹山) said on Tuesday.
“We received information that someone was cultivating cannabis at a farm on the mountain, which led us to locate and surveil it,” Jhushan Police Chief Wu Yung-chieh (吳詠傑) told a news conference.
The precinct in April obtained search warrants and formed a team to raid the site, which Wu said was difficult, as officers had to drive on mountain roads and then hike for four hours to reach the farm.
Photo courtesy of the Jhushan Police Precinct
Officers found several huts and 1,410 cannabis seedlings worth an estimated NT$20 million (US$668,047) being cultivated in a semi-open greenhouse structure by a man surnamed Chen (陳), Wu said.
They detained Chen, and seized the seedlings, tools, soil, sprinklers, scales and other items, Wu added.
“The suspect understood farming, and had experience growing fruits and vegetables at high altitude, which is quite a specialty,” Wu said. “Unfortunately, he did not apply his skills to agricultural produce, but used it to cultivate cannabis.”
Chen rented a plot of land at about 2,000m above sea level on Hehuanshan, which they said was surprising, as mountainous areas with cool nighttime temperatures are commonly used to grow cabbage, tea and peaches, but officers had not previously encountered anyone growing cannabis in such a place, police said.
Chen told officers that he bought the cannabis seeds from migrant workers from Southeast Asia, who allegedly brought them into Taiwan in their luggage, police said.
Chen faces charges under the Narcotics Hazard Prevention Act (毒品危害防制條例), Wu said.
“As police officers, we aim to crack down on cannabis farms and new forms of recreational drugs,” he said.
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