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Cannabis farm worth millions of pounds found in Manchester city centre

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson - 23rd December 2021

Police have seized cannabis worth millions of pounds from a large-scale farm in Manchester city centre.

Officers raided a property on Century Street, just off Deansgate, yesterday.

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They uncovered a cannabis farm believed to be worth millions.

The cannabis plants have now been removed and seized, though no arrests have been made.

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Cannabis worth millions has been seized by GMP. Credit: GMP

Police say they are ‘glad to have ruined Christmas’ for the criminals behind the operation.

Officers working as part of Operation Orion, which is a proactive drugs team, followed up on intelligence and attended the commercial property at around 3.30pm on Wednesday December 22.

Chief Inspector Wignall from GMP’s City of Manchester District said: “This is a significant find, and I’m glad that we’re able to ruin Christmas for some criminals by taking this drug off the streets of Manchester.

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Century Street in Manchester. Credit: Google Maps

“Those who operate the control and supply of these drugs have a hugely destructive impact on our communities and only attract further criminality to the area.

“Our investigation and enquiries will remain ongoing into this discovery, and we will continue in our pledge to disrupt this type of criminality.

“This find would not have been possible without the assistance and intelligence provided to us by the public and I would encourage anyone with any concerns or information about the trade of drugs in your area to come forward and speak with police directly or contact Crimestoppers anonymously.

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Read more: A person has been hit by a train in Greater Manchester

“I would also like to extend my message to those involved in organised crime across Manchester and stress that we will proactively pursue all available lines of enquiry and will take robust action against you, ensuring we leave no stone unturned to bring you to justice.”

Anyone with information should contact police on 101 or 999 if it’s an emergency.

You can also contact GMP via LiveChat at www.gmp.police.uk or contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Featured image: GMP

News

You’ll soon be able to leave WhatsApp group chats without anyone finding out

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant

In what is sure to be music to the ears of those sick of having irrelevant memes sent to them every 30 seconds by people you barely know, you’ll soon be able to leave WhatsApp group chats without anyone finding out.

Whether it’s a group made up of extended family members you see only see twice a year, colleagues at work, mutual friends you’re not really that keen on, or people you only met one time because you were at the same pre-drinks together before a night out, most of us are part of a WhatsApp group chat we’d rather not be.

The type of group chat you’re not really sure how you became a part of, and the type of chat you’ve got no clue how to politely leave.

And a big part of the reason most of us can’t bring ourselves to leave those groups is because, the second you do, a little notification pops-up at the bottom of the chat to notify everyone else that you have “left” – which can, understandably, be pretty awkward and embarrassing.

Luckily though, WhatsApp and Mark Zuckerberg – who is chief executive of the messaging service’s parent company, Meta – is soon to introduce a handful of new changes designed with the aim of making written messages as “secure as face-to-face conversations”, and one of those changes is allowing people to leave group chats without other members in the group finding out.

You’ll soon be able to leave WhatsApp group chats without anyone finding out / Credit: Pixabay

The company says that now only administrators of the group will receive a notification to inform them a member has exited the chat.

On top of that somewhat life-saving change, the other changes being introduced will allow people to control who can see when they are online, and also prevent screenshots being taken by other users of auto-deleting ‘View Once’ messages.

At present, the messaging service broadcasts to all contacts of a user when they are online and have the app open, but now, this is something that users will be able to choose to share with others.

WhatsApp had also previously-warned users to “only send photos or videos with ‘View Once’ media enabled to trusted individuals”, as it was possible to take a screenshot or screen recording of the message before it disappeared – but now, the act of taking screenshots will be prohibited.

In his post announcing the new WhatsApp updates, Mr Zuckerberg explained that the company will “keep building new ways to protect your messages and keep them as private and secure as face-to-face conversations.”

It’s part of a number of new changes aimed at making messages as “secure as face-to-face conversations” / Credit: Eyestetix Studio (via Unsplash)

Meta has stated on a number of occasions that it believes end-to-end encryption is the only way to ensure users are able to message each other without a third party eavesdropping on them.

Read more: Warning over new WhatsApp scam where parents are targeted by ‘their own children’

Mr Zuckerberg announced his plans to transform privacy on WhatsApp in the wake of the Cambridge Analytica scandal back in 2019, and made it impossible for Meta itself to read the content of messages that users share, which is similar to how it cannot access the content of WhatsApp messages.

However, these changes have not yet been implemented across Meta’s other platforms.

“We believe WhatsApp is the most secure place to have a private conversation,” added Ami Vora – Head of Product at WhatsApp.

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“And to spread the word about these new features, we’re also kicking off a global campaign, starting with the UK and India, to educate people about how we work to protect their private conversations on WhatsApp.”

Featured Image – Asterfolio (via Unsplash)

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Search for Greater Manchester paddleboarder missing in the Lake District

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson

A search effort for a man who went missing while paddleboarding in the Lake District has entered its third day.

The man, who has not been named but is understood to be from the Greater Manchester area, was near the ferry stop at Aira Point when he fell in.

Members of the public have been asked to avoid that area around Ullswater while emergency services continue their work.

Cumbria Police were called to the lake on Sunday (7 August) to reports that a paddleboarder had fallen in the water.

Read more: ‘Heat-health’ alert issued across UK this week as temperatures rise

The search effort now involves Maryport Rescue Coastguards, Patterdale Mountain Rescue Team, Cumbria Fire & Rescue Service, Coastguard Rescue Helicopter, the Ullswater Ranger, Whitehaven Coastguards, the Police and Northwest Ambulance Service.

A spokesperson for Cumbria Police today said: “Searches yesterday concluded early evening and were due to resume this morning.”

Anyone with information relating to this incident can report online at www.cumbria.police.uk/reportit quoting incident number 113 of 7 August 2022 or call 101.

Featured image: Flickr

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