Two men arrested after police raid cannabis growers

By Jason Pan  /  Staff reporter

A cannabis-plant cultivation system is pictured on Tuesday after its discovery by police at an undisclosed location.

Photo: provided by the Taipei City Police Department’s Criminal Investigation Division

Two suspects have been arrested after police raided locations in northern Taiwan in a crackdown on a gang growing marijuana and selling cannabis products at nightclubs in the nation’s major cities, Taipei police officials said.

The raids were conducted on Tuesday in residential buildings in Taoyuan’s Jhungli Township (中壢) and Hsinchu County’s Jhubei Township (竹北), where marijuana plants and equipment used for growing the plants were found.

Two men were arrested in Jhubei on suspicion of growing marijuana after 80 cannabis plants were discovered at the site, said Captain Yen Kuang-tsan (顏光燦) of the Taipei City Police Criminal Investigation Division.

The suspects, one surnamed Chan (詹) and the other surnamed Lu (呂), are reportedly members of a Hsinchu-based syndicate known as the “Windy Flying Sand Gang” (風飛沙幫), Yen said.

Police said investigators are now searching for other alleged gang members, and trying to discover where the two suspects obtained cannabis seeds and how they learned how to grow the plants.

Authorities were told earlier this year that Chan and Lu were allegedly frequenting nightclubs to sell marijuana and cannabis products, and put the pair under surveillance.

Police said the two men are estimated to have sold more than NT$10 million (US$310,000) worth of illegal substances over the past two years at nightclubs and other entertainment establishments in Taipei, Taoyuan, Hsinchu, Taichung, Kaohsiung and other cities.

Their customers were mostly young partygoers, including some in the acting and modeling industries, agents and overseas Chinese, police said.

“The suspects used the ‘potted plant’ method, while utilizing controlled lighting systems with high-pressure sodium lamps, automated water sprayers, dehumidifiers and electric fans to construct controlled greenhouse environments inside the cultivation rooms to encourage rapid growth of the cannabis plants,” Yen said.

The suspects are to be charged with contravening the Narcotics Hazard Prevention Act (毒品危害防制條例), which classifies marijuana as a Category II narcotic, along with mescaline, coca leaf, opium and amphetamines.

People found guilty of manufacturing, transporting or selling Category II narcotics are liable to be sentenced to a prison term ranging from seven years to life, and may be fined up to NT$10 million.