Holy Smoke! - Perth Man has Confessed to Permitting a Disused Church to be Used as a Growhouse

Source: news.stv.tv

A Perth man has confessed to permitting a disused church he owns in Forfar to be used to cultivate cannabis.

Calum Bruce Menzies, who has owned the building since 2000, pleaded guilty to "knowingly permitting or suffering" St James's Church in Forfar to be used to grow the plants when he appeared before Forfar Sheriff Court.

Police raided the abandoned church in June 2007 and found more than a 100 plants with an estimated street value of £16,000.

Officers found the main hall had been divided into two make-shift rooms. Both rooms were surrounded by plastic and were supplied with heating and lighting.

Depute fiscal Donna Brown explained that no one was in the church at the time of the raid.

Investigations led police to the two key-holders of the church, one of which was Menzies, while the other belonged to his former co-accused in the case. All charges against the co-accused have been dropped.

Menzies said that the church has been used for storage of motorbikes and he visited the church infrequently. He stated that the last time he had been inside the church was January or February 2007.

Ms Brown told the Dundee Courier: "It did, however, come to his attention on June 17 by his wife, who visited the church and noticed that bikes had been moved.

"She saw what was going on and from that date he (Menzies) was aware that cannabis cultivation was going on and he did nothing about it."

Menzies pleaded guilty to the charge of allowing the production of cannabis cultivation at the church between June 17 and June 21.

The case was adjourned until January 29 for social inquiry and social service reports.