cannabis cultivation

Marijuana growing bust in southern Taiwan breaks national record

cannabis plants growing in a greenhouse in Taiwan
Drugs 
Phillip Charlier 1 Comment , ,

Prosecutors in Yunlin County arrested five suspects after busting a marijuana growing operation they said is the biggest ever uncovered in the country’s history, it was announced today, December 4. According to a press release from the Yunlin County Special Task Force, Yunlin County police received a tip-off in May this year that a man named Tsai was involved in cultivating marijuana in a mountain district of Tainan City. Police from Yunlin, Tainan, Nantou, Changhua, and Chiayi were involved in

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Marijuana grow op busted: 780 plants in three locations in central Taiwan

Police officer among marijuana plants
Drugs 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment , , ,

Taiwan criminal investigators busted a marijuana grow op, confiscating 780 plants and 65 kilograms of dried cannabis at three locations in central Taiwan, in what is described as a sophisticated operation producing A-grade quality marijuana. According to a press release, the Telecommunications Investigation Team of the Criminal Investigation Bureau began an investigation after a tip-off at the end of last year. Police tracked the movement and activities of a 34-year-old man named Tsai and three accomplices. On May 21, police

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Law amended to reduce penalty for growing marijuana for own use

cannabis seedlings in pots
Society 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment , , ,

Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan passed the third reading of a bill today, approving amendments to the Narcotics Hazard Prevention Act to reduce sentences for growing small amounts of cannabis for self use. Under the current law, the manufacture of drugs, including cultivating marijuana, carries a minimum sentence of five years in prison. However, recent judgements have interpreted this as being not commensurate with the principle of proportionality when it comes to small amounts grown by an individual for personal use. As

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Cannabis grow ops busted in New Taipei City, Changhua City

cannabis
Drugs 
Phillip Charlier 2 Comments , , ,

Police from Taoyuan City launched raids in two separate municipalities, uncovering marijuana growing operations in New Taipei City and Changhua City, Friday, January 21, and Saturday, January 22. Police from Zhongli Branch of Taoyuan City Police Bureau coordinated with police from Shulin Branch of New Taipei City and Keelung Port Police Corps to conduct a pre-dawn raid on a house in Shulin District, New Taipei City yesterday, January 21. The raid uncovered 686 live cannabis plants, and 15 kilograms of

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Man caught growing 186 marijuana plants ‘for his own use’

cannabis grown under lights
Drugs 
Phillip Charlier 1 Comment , ,

A man caught growing marijuana in Keelung City yesterday, December 20, told police that the 186 plants were for his own use. Police raided a house on Fuyi Street, after receiving a tip-off that the 50-year-old man, named Chen, was cultivating marijuana in the building. Police investigators found 13 mature plants, 173 seedlings, 13 bags of dried cannabis with a total weight of 549 grams, cultivation equipment, and other evidence. The plants were grown under lights, with black cloth covering

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Mad reefer: beef noodle shop peddles manic marijuana strain

cannabis indoor grow chamber
Drugs 
Phillip Charlier 4 Comments ,

Police uncovered growing locations of a rare strain of marijuana in Yilan County, Taichung City, and Kaohsiung City, after a months-long investigation that uncovered a drug ring centered around a beef noodle restaurant in northern Taiwan. The Third Special Police Corps began an investigation into the drug ring in April after the arrest of a male foreign student who was found growing a rare cannabis variety known as “sour diesel” in Taoyuan City. The suspect, described in media reports as

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County Mayor takes a sniff but doesn’t get a whiff at Changhua’s biggest marijuana bust display

Changhua county Mayor Wang Huimei points to a marijuana plant
Drugs 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment , ,

Changhua County Mayor Wang Huei-mei said she still doesn’t know what marijuana smells like because she was wearing a mask while visiting a police exhibit displaying evidence of the largest cannabis growing operation uncovered in the county in recent years. Changhua County prosecutors have charged four men in relation to the case after police investigators found 275 marijuana plants being grown in a rented apartment in Xizhou Township. Investigators conducted a 24-hour surveillance on the operation, and finally swooped a

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Migrant workers caught growing cannabis, breaching epidemic restrictions in Pingtung County

police examine cannabis plant
Drugs 
Phillip Charlier 1 Comment , , ,

A group of migrant workers were charged for growing cannabis, and producing marijuana cigarettes in Pingtung County, Sunday, and will also be fined for breaching epidemic restrictions, Liberty Times, and United Daily News reported today, Tuesday, May 25. Ligang Police Sub-bureau received a report claiming that someone was growing marijuana and making marijuana cigarettes, leading to an investigation that culminated in a raid on a property in Yanpu Township at around 3:00 pm, Sunday. Police arrested six Thai and Vietnamese

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Another record cannabis grow-op busted: Decriminalization “impossible” says MOJ

cannabis cultivation in Hsinchu City
Drugs 
Phillip Charlier 2 Comments , ,

Hsinchu City police announced they had uncovered the largest indoor cannabis cultivation operation in history, and the Minister of Justice said that decriminalization of marijuana in Taiwan is “absolutely not possible” at a press conference today, May 7. The record marijuana haul, grown in a factory building, included 1,540 live cannabis plants, 7 kilograms of finished product, and 880 marijuana cigarettes. Police estimate the value of the haul at close to NT$500 million. Minister of Justice Tsai Ching-hsiang (蔡清祥) attended

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Large cannabis grow-op uncovered in Hsinchu County

cannabis plants
Drugs 
Phillip Charlier 3 Comments , ,

The Criminal Investigation Bureau raided a property in Hsinchu County recently and uncovered a marijuana cultivation operation with more than 1,600 plants, the CIB revealed at a press conference today, April 21. A police spokesperson said that the Taipei office of the CIB received a report in mid-March that a drug cartel had rented a large factory in Hsinchu to plant cannabis. The subsequent investigation found that seedlings were raised in the factory, then transferred to a property in the

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Taiwan to reduce sentences for growing marijuana for own use after constitutional ruling

cannabis seedlings in pots
Society 
Phillip Charlier 3 Comments , ,

The penalty for growing marijuana for one’s own use will be reduced from the current minimum of five years in prison, after the Judicial Yuan deemed such sentences unconstitutional based on the principle of proportionality. The ruling was made March 20 last year, and lawmakers were given one year to make amendments to the law. Amendments to the Drug Harm Prevention and Control Regulations will be sent to the Executive Yuan for discussion tomorrow, March 11, according to reports in

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