Police swoop on derelict mill in Selkirk

Author: Ally McGilvrayPublished 21st Nov 2023
Last updated 21st Nov 2023

A former Borders mill has been sealed off with police tape and officers remain at the scene tonight (Tuesday).

It comes amid reports another cannabis farm has been unearthed in the region.

If confirmed, it would be the third in two months, following recent drugs raids in Galashiels and Hawick.

Officers swooped on the former Forest Mill, on Dunsdale Road in Selkirk, around 10am this morning.

It's understood the multi-storey building, which is missing parts of its roof, has been empty for more than a decade and remains on the at-risk buildings register.

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Around 10am on Tuesday, November 21st, officers attended at the derelict Forrest Mill, Dunsdale Road, Selkirk to search the premises under warrant.

"Officers remain at the scene and enquiries are ongoing."

Earlier this month, a cannabis cultivation believed to be worth around £500,000 was unearthed just six miles away at the former Warehouse nightclub in Overhaugh Street, Galashiels.

And, last month, more than 400 cannabis plants were seized by police, 11 miles away in the opposite direction, in Hawick. Two men from Albania have been charged in connection with the raid on the former Buccleuch Hotel in Trinity Street.

Last year, two men were arrested after cannabis plants, estimated to have a street value of around £1m, were recovered from an outbuilding in Newmill on Teviot, south of Hawick.

Speaking earlier this month, Chief Inspector Stuart Fletcher, Police Scotland's Area Commander for the Scottish Borders, said: “We are absolutely committed to disrupting the supply of drugs in our communities and we will use every tool and resource at our disposal to remove these illegal substances from our streets.

“Information from the public remains vital to our efforts. If you have any information or concerns about drugs misuse or wider criminality in your area, please contact us on 101 or contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111, where anonymity can be maintained.”

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