Pirated DVD raid uncovers cannabis Bristol production
TRADING standards officers helped to discover a cannabis factory while raiding a house for pirate DVDs in Filton.
Officers from South Gloucestershire Council carried out the raid at a property on Wednesday, and found pirated film box sets, fake Tiffany jewellery and Ugg footwear.
As part of the investigation they also unearthed hydroponic equipment, which was thought to be associated with the production of cannabis at another property in Patchway. The counterfeit goods were detained following an investigation into sales on an internet auction site.
The seller was identified and a raid carried out on their home address, as well as the address in Patchway.
Trading Standards were accompanied by officers from the police, a representative from the Federation against Copyright Theft (FACT) and financial investigators, as the counterfeit items sold over the last 18 months are estimated to have netted more than £20,000.
A quantity of paperwork relating to counterfeit sales was also detained as well as a laptop, which is due to be forensically examined.
No arrests were made, but the seller will be investigated further and may then be subject to criminal proceedings.
The council said that for legal reasons it was not able to identify the seller or the address of the property.
Copied box sets recovered include the complete series of US crime dramas The Sopranos and NCIS.
Neil Derrick, the senior enforcement officer for South Gloucestershire Council Trading Standards, said: "It seems that we have not only disrupted a high value pirated films enterprise, but possibly some equipment used for the production of cannabis.
"Although people are suffering financially in this economic climate, I would strongly urge them to consider only legal means of securing extra income to make ends meet."
Councillor Heather Goddard, executive member for communities, added: "The production and sale of counterfeit goods in South Gloucestershire is not tolerated.
"This successful raid goes to show that the council and its partners in the police are serious about cracking down on these sorts of crimes, and we would urge anyone to report this type of illegal activity."
21 Comments
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by David, Stockwood
Saturday, September 19 2009, 8:39AM
“@ Bill
Let's just sum up this whole debate by with a few select words.
Pot and kettle.
Glass houses and stones.
Everybody happy now?”
by Bill, The Wood
Saturday, September 19 2009, 3:05AM
“Its funny how, whenever I've been offered dodgy DVD's in pubs in Bristol & London its always an asian person! Sterotypes do not just get made up, they are from true experiences- it is not raceism so get over it.”
by David, Stockwood
Friday, September 18 2009, 9:35PM
“Never mind jumping to conclusion as to which minority group might be involved here. What about the majority of whites who are buying these pirated DVDs? Having possession of stolen goods is also an illegal act, let's not forget. Millions and millions of songs are downloaded illegally everyday in this country and nobody is going to be able to convince me that they're all being done by "far eastern organised criminal gangs."”
by Tom, Local
Friday, September 18 2009, 8:33PM
“Ann Onn, Brissle,
So do nothing? OK.”
by Ann Onn, Brissle
Friday, September 18 2009, 3:50PM
“Why does the first line of this article say:
"TRADING standards officers helped to discover a cannabis factory while raiding a house for pirate DVDs in Filton."
when it appears that actually no cannabis was found at all, according to the rest of the article? That's pretty poor journalism. Actually, it's worse than that, it's outright lying.
Some equipment was found. Equipment that is 100% legal to own.
Drugs and piracy are two devices used by authority figures to oppress the little guy these days. Both drugs and copyright infringement have amazingly draconian laws associated with them, which have no basis in reality:
There will always be people who want to take drugs, and so by prohibiting them you get nothing but an uncontrollable black market. Just like with alcohol prohibition in the USA in the 20s and 30s, we have gang violence, dangerous products, corrupt officials, and massive profits to be made for those that don't get caught.
And as for copyright infringement, anyone can go out and buy a machine for a few hundred quid that can churn out copies of music, films, etc. faster than at pretty much any point in history. For 50 years or so only big business could provide copies of data to people, but since the advent of computing and the internet that business model has become obsolete. The draconian laws surrounding copyright infringement, and the loud whinging about "piracy" are the reaction of powerful groups looking to protect their profits.”