Albanian drug gangs flooding Scotland as energy companies urged to tackle crime

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Energy companies are being urged to join the battle against Albanian gangsters, who are flooding Scotland with cannabis farms.Courts across the country have processed cases involving the production of tens of millions of pounds worth of powerful “skunk” - with a relentless conveyer belt of crime gang members being busted every month.The skunk farms involve rented homes and empty business premises being ripped apart to create planting areas.But the crucial component of a big yield is electricity - which means huge surges usage at properties, all resulting in millions of pounds of energy being stolen from the national grid.Former top cop and MSP Graeme Pearson said he is astonished that big electricity suppliers are not involved in the disruption of the international crime groups.He believes Scotland must establish early detection systems to give alerts to spikes in electricity usage, particularly when buildings are empty.Cases at court usually see Albanian “gardeners”, often put in place by powerful crime bosses, claiming to have been trafficked to Scotland to become fall-guys when the cultivations are busted.In some cases this is true and in others the gardeners are simply part of the Organised Crime Groups - which are growing every day.It is believed that hundreds of secret skunks are churning out the illicit product in Scotland every day.Pearson, the former Director General of the Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency, tried to set up systems to counter the cannabis gangs while a Scottish Labour justice spokesman in 2015.He said: “I tried during my time as an MSP to get the energy companies interested in that side of things.“It obviously wasn’t a business priority for them to trace these kinds of supplies.“But