Over £500,000 worth of ‘hybrid Californian’ cannabis seized at Watford hotel

More than £500,000 of cannabis has been seized during a police raid on a hotel in Hertfordshire.

City of London Police believe the drugs were being illegally smuggled into the UK from America to be sold across the Square Mile and parts of London.

Detectives arrested two men and a woman in Watford, seized multiple strains of hybrid Californian cannabis and around £5,000 in cash.

Pictures of the haul, shared by the police, show large vacuum packed bags of Class B drugs stashed inside a suitcase.The National Crime Agency also worked on the investigation.

Detective Superintendent Richard Waight, City of London Police said: “This is a significant haul in our fight against the illegal trafficking and supply of drugs in the City and across London.

“Drugs in London severely impacts our communities, drives violence and organised crime and can lead to vulnerable people being exploited.

“City of London Police are committed to bringing organised crime groups to justice and making our streets safer.”

Luke French, 35, of Moat Lane, Birmingham, and Joanne Parkes, 47, appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday Apil 10, charged with fraudulent evasion of a prohibition on the importation of Class B drugs and possessing cannabis with intent to supply.

Parkes, of Benedon Road, Birmingham, is also accused of possession of criminal property.

Roberto Martinez, 32, of Huntingdon Park, California, is charged with importation.

All three were remanded in custody until a hearing at Inner London Crown Court on Wednesday, May 8.