A CANNABIS farm discovered in a semi-detached house in a Kent town has been shut down by police.

Officers seized a total of 164 mature and semi-mature cannabis plants from the property in Astra Drive, Gravesend, on Wednesday afternoon.

The plants were found growing in the front room and three bedrooms of the property and would have been worth around £20,000 on the streets.

A complicated and costly light, heat and irrigation system was also in place and the electricity meter had been bypassed.

The raid is the 11th closure of an illegal cannabis farm by the area’s Drugs Intervention Team since April last year, and brings the total number of plants seized to more than 2,680 - which would have produced drugs worth almost £250,000 on the streets.

The drugs team was alerted by outgoing Riverview beat officer, PC Stuart Hardie and his replacement, PC Terry McCann, who were contacted by members of the community suspicious about the blacked out windows at the property.

PC Hardie said: "To be a part of closing down this illegal cannabis farm was a great way to spend my last hours on the beat in Riverview.

"I have been a part of this community for three years now and if it wasn’t for the eyes and ears of the people who live here, this house could have been producing drugs for months to come."

Police ask residents to be on the look out for signs of possible illegal drugs activity, including windows permanently covered from the inside, erratic visits to the address, the removal of quantities of black bags, and a pungent smell emanating from the property.

Anyone with information can call 01322 283115 or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555111.