10-year-old’s guinea pigs spark drug raid
Drugs squad raid garage after mistaking guinea pig heater for cannabis farm hotspot
We’ve all heard stories of police being a little overzealous with the general public, but this one really tickled us.
Police chiefs have apologised to a family after a 10-year-old boy’s elderly guinea pigs, 10-year-old Simon and Kenny were at the centre of a drugs raid.
The pet heater that owner Pam Hardcastle used to keep Simon and Kenny snug was mistaken for a ‘hotspot’ lighting system used by a force helicopter in the area. These lighting systems are used by drug dealers to grow cannabis.
The squad burst into Pam’s garage in Bradford armed with a battering ram, but were left red faced as Pam revealed the heating system was little more than a cosy addition to Simon and Kenny’s home.
“When I opened it up and they saw the guinea pigs, they didn’t say anything,” said Pam. “They were in the garage two seconds and they left.’”
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“I would like to apologise for the distress [the raid] may have caused,” said Inspector Darren Brown.
We hope you said sorry to Simon and Kenny too, Inspector Brown, poor little things…
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