Cannabis Haul Valued Incorrectly

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http://www.northernstar.com.au/story/2010/11/16/cannabis-haul-valued-incorrectly-clarence/

 

 

Cannabis haul valued incorrectly

16th November 2010

 

A CANNABIS haul valued by police at about $8 million would really have been worth only about $270,000, cannabis law reform campaigner Michael Balderstone has said.

 

Police last week seized more than 4800 cannabis plants ranging up to two metres in height, along with 25kg of dried cannabis head, in raids around the region.

 

Based on a valuation of $2000 per plant, police said the drugs had a potential street value of about $8 million.

 

However, Mr Balderstone said the true figure would have been lower. He said only one-in-10 plants in a cannabis crop usually survived to harvest.

 

Those that did usually yielded about an ounce (28 grams) of useable marijuana, which he said was worth about $200.

 

That put the value of the 4800 plants at about $96,000. Combined with the 25kg of dried cannabis head, that meant a value of $272,400.

 

Drug Squad commander Superintendent Nick Bingham agreed the police method of testing values was imprecise, but added it was based on the ‘potential’ value of a crop.

 

“There is always going to be conjecture on what a plant is valued at,†he said.

[dani]

http://www.northernstar.com.au/story/2010/11/16/cannabis-haul-valued-incorrectly-clarence/

 

 

Cannabis haul valued incorrectly

16th November 2010

 

A CANNABIS haul valued by police at about $8 million would really have been worth only about $270,000, cannabis law reform campaigner Michael Balderstone has said.

 

Police last week seized more than 4800 cannabis plants ranging up to two metres in height, along with 25kg of dried cannabis head, in raids around the region.

 

Based on a valuation of $2000 per plant, police said the drugs had a potential street value of about $8 million.

 

However, Mr Balderstone said the true figure would have been lower. He said only one-in-10 plants in a cannabis crop usually survived to harvest.

 

Those that did usually yielded about an ounce (28 grams) of useable marijuana, which he said was worth about $200.

 

That put the value of the 4800 plants at about $96,000. Combined with the 25kg of dried cannabis head, that meant a value of $272,400.

 

Drug Squad commander Superintendent Nick Bingham agreed the police method of testing values was imprecise, but added it was based on the ‘potential’ value of a crop.

 

“There is always going to be conjecture on what a plant is valued at,†he said.

 

nice post

About time somebody spoke out about the BS value of busted grows...and it's actually printed. Hope it the idiot who propagate this BS and some people actually start to wonder about the supposed value of busts when the start blowing their trumpets about how they have kept the streets safe from criminals...

1 thing however, street value in Sydney would probably be closer to estimates.. I know i $$ it

[sn00p]

oh

[DarkSpark]

heh yeah it cracks me up... valuing each plant at 2k a piece... if people could yield a half poun - pound per plant from ALL their seedlings i would want growing lessons from that person xD... uless they veg em for like 6 AGES...

 

Good on ya michael. Keep the coppers on their toes

 

i like how it is based o the potential value. If they basing laws off potential, and maybe/could bes then we are screwed. as stated above it is jus tthem wanting to feel good about themselves. Talking up what they have done for the commuity etc... i also notice they always hit people for it at street value... Just so you know pigs, who are reading this for sure, the growers RARELY sell to the streets, infact they prolly get about half as much for the same amount as the guys selling to the streets.

 

I still wish they would start taking out Meth labs and shit. I am actually seeing the effects on my local youth community as they are all turning from canna to Amphetamines. Its disgraceful. Now that Acid, meth and all the rest are cheaper what do you think the ghetto youths are going to do ??? It really is a disgrace. I can't keep going on it pisses me off to much.

[Sylar420]

Yea the stupid prices cops put on plants is retarded its like saying "this knife we found in your kitchen could potentially kill a hundreds of people" or that pack of cold and flue tablets we found in your medicine box can make $$$ in meth like come on, they should value the plant at its current harvest weight not future weight, if its not in budding and has no bud then its not worth a thing, if its a day before harvest then it might be worth something but saying that the 50 cuttings i took from a mother plant is worth $100 000 (50x$2000) is just stupid.

 

DarkSpark "if people could yield a half pound - pound per plant from ALL their seedlings i would want growing lessons from that person"

 

Fuck yea mate! tho i have seen it done before and it was 1000w hps per plant in a block of rockwool, power was jacked cos it was in veg for 2 months and blook for 4 months

[iamnotacop]

I noticed this today actually.

 

It is the prosecution's case that throughout the period of two years two months covered by the indictment, the defendant cultivated and sold cannabis. I am informed that cannabis head loses about 25 per cent of its weight in the course of being dried for sale. On this basis it is reasonable to assume that the cannabis head drying on racks in the house would have weighed about 3,500 grams, or 125 ounces, when sold. The estimated value of 125 ounces of cannabis sold in amounts of one ounce at $300 per ounce is $37,500 or $23,440 if sold in one pound amounts at $3,000 per pound. If the head found drying on racks in the house is the yield from the 32 root balls, each plant produced approximately 109 grams of traffickable cannabis, which is a modest estimate of the likely yield per plant. Adopting this estimate of the yield per plant the 343 plants that were found, which total does not include the root balls, would have produced 37,387 grams or 1,335 ounces of marketable cannabis. If sold at $300 per ounce, the return would have been $400,575. These estimates provide some guidance on the scale of the defendant's operations. The period that is the subject of the indictment is two years, two months. Cannabis can be hydroponically cultivated throughout the year, the hydroponic cycle being on average 14 to 16 weeks from planting to harvesting.

 

Now how many mistakes can you find in that. The fact that it was spouted by a learned fella really pisses me off.

 

http://www.supremecourt.tas.gov.au/cops/stevens_e_m

 

 

Poor bastard is gone for at least 18 months because a prosecutor did not insure that the learned fella had all the facts based on actual facts.

Same judge, same day, another VICTIM

http://www.supremecourt.tas.gov.au/cops/pithouse_p_m

 

The plants located were one to one and a half months in age. It takes a hydroponically grown plant approximately three months to mature.

 

I have been provided with estimates of the sale value for the marketable value of cannabis from 39 plants. The estimates proceed on the basis of a yield of between 100 grams and 450 grams per plant. The estimated value varies dependent upon the quantities in which the cannabis is sold and the price. The price b weight is less as the quantity sold increases. At the lowest estimated yield of 100 grams per plant, sold in quantities of one pound at the lowest estimated price of $2,000 per pound, the estimated value of 39 plants is $16,000. At the highest estimated yield of 450 grams per plant, sold in lots of one quarter ounce – 7 grams, at the highest estimated price of $100 per lot, the estimated value of 39 plants is $250,700.

 

Applying the above approach to the 936 grams of drying cannabis head that was located, its estimated value ranges between $4,000 and $13,300.

 

All of a sudden 39 little plants are a quarter of a million dollars worth, ffs.