Open water tap leads German police to cannabis discovery
January 23, 2017
A police patrol responding to a report of flooding at a residential and commercial building in Bremen found 427 cannabis plants, the city's police said on Monday.
Police responded to a call last Tuesday from a resident in the building, who suspected a pipe leak was behind flooding that had left the basement covered in a centimeter (about half an inch) of water. To determine the source of the water, the police called the fire department to break down a locked door in the basement complex.
To the officers' surprise, the door opened to a professional indoor cannabis growing site. Upon closer inspection, police found the water tank in the room was overflowing because the grower had forgotten to turn off the water spout. A further search of the basement found more growing equipment.
The resident who called the police said the basement belonged to someone who rented out one of the building's shops. Police are still investigating.
Cultivating or selling marijuana is illegal in Germany, although possession of small amounts tends not to lead to prosecution. The German parliament last week voted to legalize medical marijuana.
Opposition parties in Germany like the Greens and the Left Party have long fought for legalization.