Police say the factory 'bore all the hallmarks of organised criminal gang involvement'
A man has received a 24 month sentence for his role in a "large and sophisticated" cannabis factory in Ballymena that police say "bore all the hallmarks of an organised crime gang".
Commenting, Detective Inspector Kelly from the Police Service’s Organised Crime Unit said: “On Wednesday, 27th September 2023, local police officers conducted a planned search of business premises owned by Robert McMitchell in Broughshane Street, Ballymena. “Lin Wang was arrested in an adjoining premises and we believed that he was responsible for maintaining the cultivation operation.
Detective Inspector Kelly continued: “This was clearly a well organised operation, which bore all the hallmarks of organised criminal gang involvement. Those involved were clearly motivated by greed. We believe Chinese and Western Balkan individuals were involved in the running of this operation. Had this cannabis farm been left to operate, it would have been capable of making hundreds of thousands of pounds over a number of harvests.
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