London flat fully equipped and ‘used recently to grow cannabis’ to be sold at auction for £275,000
6 March 2023, 12:16 | Updated: 6 March 2023, 12:59
A cannabis factory is up for auction in north London, with paraphernalia and growing equipment still in place.
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Photos of the property on Auction House London show ventilation pipes and wiring still dangling from the ceiling.
A virtual tour video posted online shows aluminium foil on the walls, used to reflect and increase the power of grow lights, boosting the cannabis yield. Fans are also strewn throughout the cluttered property, which is on Ballards Lane in Barnet.
Auctioneers said in an honest listing of the two-bedroom flat: "The property comprises a second floor two bedroom flat situated within a mixed use building arranged over ground and two upper floors.
"The property has been recently used to grow cannabis and requires a program of refurbishment."
Ballards Lane, Finchley - 15th March Auction
A spokesperson for Auction House London told the Jewish Chronicle: "A client of ours decided an auction was the best way to dispose of the property.
"As long as the price is right, people will buy it."
It is unclear when the property became a cannabis factory. Barnet Council gave the owner planning permission to convert the property into two flats in 2022, making no mention of illegal drugs activity.
A spokesperson for the police told LBC that police would have been aware of the factory and involved in shutting it down, but did not provide more details.
It is illegal to grow any part of a cannabis plant in the UK, where the drug is classified as class B. Doing so risks a maximum of 14 years in prison.
People working in cannabis factories are often the victims of human trafficking and modern slavery.
After factories across London were raided in January this year, National Crime Agency senior investigating officer Neil Gardiner said: “Modern slavery is often difficult to tackle because the victims don’t always recognise they are being exploited, which is why we need the public’s help.
“I’d ask anyone who sees something they don’t feel is right to report it. It might be someone seeming afraid, vulnerable or controlled, moved around against their will. These are all signs of exploitation.”
