POLICE took £35,000 of cannabis off the streets after raiding a small warehouse in Westcliff.

Officers uncovered 90 cannabis plants and cultivation equipment during the raid, off London Road, yesterday morning.

A man in his twenties from Southend was arrested at the scene under the misuse of drugs act on suspicion of producing cannabis and abstracting electricity.

The plants were seized by police along with drug-making equipment such as lamps and fans.

Sergeant Ashley Holland, of Southend tactical team, who led the raid on the property, said: “With a haul like this it gets it off the streets and out of the hands of criminals.

“We were acting on intelligence provided to us by members of the public and I would always encourage anyone to report suspicious behaviour or drug related activity.

“Essex Police will always followup on intelligence and if it is substantiated it can lead to operations such as this.

“There was no sign of anyone living in the premises, but we found one male upon arrival, who was subsequently arrested, and our investigations will continue into who owns the property and whether it was being rented to anyone.”

Nearby businesses in London Road were unaware of the cannabis farm and concerned that drugs were being cultivated so close to where they work.

One business owner, who asked not to be named, said: “I’m very surprised they were there, but then there does seem to be a lot of that stuff going on in Southend nowadays.

“It’s not ideal, to put it mildly, I don’t like drugs and do not want them around here.”

Another business owner, who again did not want to be named, was also concerned about drugs in the town.

He said: “It’s something that goes on all the time and the courts will not do anything about it.

“Unfortunately it’s not surprising in Southend, but I admit I didn’t think we had those sort of people around here.”