
Man charged after cannabis worth more than £500,000 seized in raid
On Thursday, officers executed a warrant at a property on Albert Street where a large quantity of cannabis was recovered.
A 24-year-old man was arrested and charged in connection with the recovery.
He is due to appear at Dundee Sheriff Court on Friday.
A report will be submitted to the Procurator Fiscal.
Detective inspector Gary Lamb said: 'This recovery will prevent a significant quantity of controlled drugs from being distributed into communities.
'It highlights our ongoing commitment to protecting the public from the harm caused by this type of criminality.
'Those involved in the illegal drugs trade in Scotland should be in no doubt that our work to disrupt and make arrests is continuing.
'This seizure also clearly underlines our commitment to the Serious Organised Crime Taskforce and the country's Serious Organised Crime Strategy.
'Information from the public is crucial to our success in tackling crime.
'Anyone with information or concerns about drugs is asked to contact Police Scotland on 101 or make a call anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.'
Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News
Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


The Herald Scotland
an hour ago
- The Herald Scotland
Police Scotland monitoring of Palestine protests revealed
Dubbed Operation Tarlac, the coordinated approach was developed by the National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC), and sought to support local police and counter-terrorism forces to ensure 'public safety and community cohesion.' A briefing document viewed by The Herald outlines Police Scotland's response to mass protests in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Dundee, and Aberdeen on Saturday, October 14th, one week after the conflict erupted. Pro-Palestine protests have taken place across the UK. (Image: Lucy North / PA) A command centre was set up in Govan after the force received intelligence of potential counter-protests and 'disorder' on the morning of the 14th. Operational notes explain that 250 people gathered in Aberdeen and 300 took to the streets in Dundee, while 500 people marched to the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh. Meanwhile, approximately 6,000 people gathered at the Buchanan Street Steps before proceeding to the BBC's headquarters on Pacific Quay. No counter protest was identified, and all events ended peacefully. Assistant Chief Superintendent David Robertson told colleagues: 'In spite of significantly greater numbers than anticipated, the event passed off peacefully with a proportionate policing deployment. 'It resulted in only one fixed penalty notice for a breach of the peace directed towards officers.' In total, police attended nearly 500 planned pro-Palestine protests across Scotland between October 2023 and May 2025, as well as an unspecified number of 'spontaneous' demonstrations. Officers were called out to 178 protests in the Greater Glasgow region, as well as 98 in the North East, 75 in Edinburgh, 54 in Tayside, and 46 in Dumfries and Galloway. 'Operation Tarlac' was launched amid nationwide concern over ethnic tensions in the wake of the Hamas attacks. A letter to NPCC members, sent on October 8th, reads: 'What we have learnt from our monitoring of UK communities during times of previous conflict, notably in 2014 and 2021, is that there is likely to be an adverse reaction here in the UK, as well as the potential for individuals and extremist groups around the world to use the conflict to justify their own violence. 'It is vital that we play an active and informed role to reassure affected communities and by responding robustly to any incidents that seek to increase tensions rather than to share empathy. 'I would urge all forces to reach out locally to affected communities and maintain effective communications to reassure them that we will not tolerate illegal activity, regardless of how distressing the international violence is to our communities.' Police Scotland have attended more than 500 protests. (Image: Newsquest) Police Scotland has been criticised by pro-Palestine activists in recent months. In March, campaigners called for a review of the force's conduct at protests. At the time, Scottish Friends of Palestine said: 'There are currently about 40 Palestine supporters facing court cases. It is worth noting that over the past 16 months hardly any arrests have resulted in convictions by the Scottish courts. 'This is a huge waste of public resources that could easily be avoided if Police Scotland got their act together and provided their officers and commanders with adequate training about the public's right to protest and the limitations of officers' powers when dealing with political protests.' Others have spoken out since the Palestine Action group was proscribed in July. Kimberley Davidson of the Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign told The Herald that activists have had to have 'difficult conversations' in the wake of the ban. She said: 'There is a very clear approach that has been taken by police up and down the UK. People have been arrested for wearing T-shirts and others have been challenged by police over Palestine flags and anti-Israel placards.' More than 200 people have been arrested across the UK on suspicion of expressing support for Palestine Action since the ban came into force. Read more: A Police Scotland spokesperson told The Herald: 'We have a legal duty to protect the rights of people who wish to peacefully protest and we'll engage with protest groups. 'Campaigning and demonstration is a legitimate, necessary and vital part of life. 'However, abusive, threatening behaviour or activity intended to disrupt an event that poses a risk to safety is not legitimate protest. 'Every situation is unique and we will respond proportionately.'


Daily Record
3 hours ago
- Daily Record
Heroin dealers fined just £499 as punishment for Scotland's mounting drug deaths
The Sunday Mail can reveal the shockingly lenient punishments being handed out despite 1065 fatalities last year - the highest of any European country. Heroin dealers are receiving average court fine of just £499 despite Scotland's drug deaths epidemic, we can reveal. The shockingly lenient punishments are being handed out despite 1065 fatalities last year - the highest of any European country. Meanwhile less than a third of those convicted of dealing offences receive a jail sentence according to official figures. Bereaved families along with politicians and campaigners have reacted furiously and demanded custodial sentences for dealers. Linda McVean, whose son Frankie died of an overdose, has demanded prison for heroin dealers while Lib Dem MSP Jamie Greene branded the puny penalties 'pocket change'. Linda, 56, lost her son Frankie after he dabbling with the drugs while staying at a homeless hostel. She later bought illegal street valium herself to show how pushers were operating with impunity. Linda said: 'I will never get over Frankie's death, it will stay with me forever and it makes me sick to think these dealers are being allowed to sell these deadly drugs more or less openly. 'Drug addicts need to be treated with compassion but the dealers are selling death and misery and should face jail. 'If you walk through the city centre of Glasgow you can see deals being carried out in front of your eyes on street corners and it is unacceptable. 'This is an industry that makes millions of pounds for the people at the top - meanwhile thousands of users who end up hooked are dying. 'How do you possibly think that a fine of less than £500 is going to put anyone off, it is ridiculous, they can make that back in a day. 'The police and the courts and the government all have a responsibility to make clear that there will be consequences for drug dealing and that it will result in a custodial sentence.' Linda paid £10 on Glasgow's Argyle Street for 28 street valium pills months after Frankie died in May 2023. She then made a report to Police Scotland, telling detectives she was disgusted the trade in drugs was allowed to go on in full view of shoppers. When Linda bought the drugs close to Glasgow's Central Station, she told the dealer: 'These are the same pills that killed my son. You should be ashamed of yourself.' Linda, from Penilee, Glasgow, added: 'At every level this trade is being allowed to continue despite people dying every day. 'It is ruining thousands of lives, there are families behind every one of these drug deaths who will never get over the grief of losing their child or brother or sister, it is utterly tragic. 'The people responsible for selling drugs need to take responsibility for their actions but that is never going to happen if they are more or less walking free from court even after a conviction.' Frankie, 30, died while staying at the Queens Park Hotel in Glasgow, where several lives have been claimed by drugs. He was not an addict when he entered the homeless accommodation but dabbled with pills believed to have been sold by low level dealers. His was one of a cluster of deaths at the hotel and Glasgow's Rennie Mackintosh Station Hotel. Liberal Democrat MSP Greene said: 'Communities are only too familiar with the damage that drug dealers can do to vulnerable people. 'Given the vast profits and immense misery that heroin can generate, it seems strange that the punishment is a monetary fine of a sum that major players in the drugs business will treat as pocket change. 'Not only that but the punishments for different drugs feel totally arbitrary. The law acts like there's little difference in the harm caused by drugs like heroin and the harm caused by something as common as cannabis.' The average penalty for possessing heroin with intent to supply was just £499 in 2022-23 - similar to the typical fine for dealing cannabis of £485 and £503 for ecstasy. For cocaine dealing the figure was £719. Opioids like heroin are responsible for up to 80 per cent of the nation's overdose deaths, with 1065 suspected drugs deaths in Scotland last year. Drugs campaigner Annemarie Ward, of charity Faces and Voices of Recovery UK, branded the average fines for dealing as the 'effective decriminalisation' of illicit substances. She said: 'When dealers for huge criminal gangs who are making millions, arguably billions of pounds in Scotland are getting fined 500 quid, that's effectively decriminalisation. 'This push and the language we have around decriminalisation, as taking a 'public health approach' and a 'compassionate approach', is rhetoric and posturing and it's a farce.' Ward, who says Scotland's focus on harm reduction measures like Glasgow's safe injecting facility has come at the expense of drugs rehabilitation and prevention, added: 'Perhaps a new government in 2026 will tackle this with more balance.' The Scottish Government has stated it wants drug possession to no longer be a criminal offence, although this would require Westminster to change the law. Drug dealing would continue to be a crime under its proposals. Convicted drug pushers can face jail, a community sentence or a financial penalty, or a combination under the Scottish justice system. Some 1489 Scots were successfully prosecuted for drugs possession with intent to supply as their main offence in 2022-23, the latest year for which data is available. Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. Data shows the rate of dealers being locked up has fallen from 54 per cent in 2013-14 to 29 per cent in the most recent year - or around 400 criminals. Around 800 of cases (54 per cent) end in a community sentence instead, up from 37 per cent a decade ago. And in more than 200 (17 per cent) of dealing cases - including for supplying dangerous Class A drugs like heroin - a fine is the main penalty. In recent weeks, we've highlighted the rise of synthetic opioids called nitazenes being cut into street heroin. One superstrong substance, dubbed 'pyro', has already been linked to dozens of heroin deaths this year. It's raised fears that after a slight improvement in the rate of deaths, Scotland's drugs epidemic - still the worst in Europe - could spiral again. Last week, one recovering drug user told how dealers get off 'scot free' even when a contaminated batch of heroin causes a spate of deaths. The dad in his 30s, from Glasgow, said: 'It's going completely under the radar. 'It's incredibly common across the whole UK for one place to get a strong batch then a bunch of folk die, the dealers go into hiding for a bit but no one ever knows because generally families don't want to talk about it… when things have calmed down the cycle repeats.' The Scottish Government said it 'takes the issue of drug dealing very seriously' and that it is 'determined to tackle drug harms'. A spokesman added: 'Sentencing in individual cases is a matter for the independent courts, taking into account all the facts and circumstances before them.'


Daily Mail
10 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Nicola was treated appallingly by the police over fraud probe insists close friend and crime writer Val McDermid
Nicola Sturgeon 's close friend the crime writer Val McDermid has launched an astonishing attack on Police Scotland, accusing the force of treating the former First Minister 'appallingly'. The long-time friend of the former first minister took aim at police as extracts of Ms Sturgeon's upcoming memoirs revealed the 'mental torture' she said she endured during the probe into the SNP 's finances. In the first extract of the book published by the Times, Ms Sturgeon describes how she felt like she had 'fallen into the plot of a dystopian novel' and was gripped by despair when she was arrested in connection with the investigation. Although she was eventually cleared of any wrongdoing, Ms Sturgeon also said the experience of her husband Mr Murrell being rearrested and charged was like a nightmare without end. Giving her own take on the two year police investigation into her friend, Ms McDermid said: 'She's been treated appallingly by Police Scotland - and by the media, outside Scotland and inside.' Ms McDermid, who has been friends for the last decade with Ms Sturgeon, has also jumped to her friend's defence over the way she feels the ex SNP leader has been treated and has claimed mysogyny is at the root of the problem. She told the Daily Telegraph: 'I've seen some of the stuff she gets poured on her head and it's horrible. You would not say that to your wife or your sister – but to say it to a complete stranger seems to be acceptablae. 'It is misogynistic. Any woman in Scottish politics will tell you the same thing. I have friends who have left politics because of it. I have friends who grit their teeth and go into work every day and put up with it. It is not just Nicola who is the victim of this.' However, the impending publication of Ms Sturgeon's autobiography - Frankly - has already drawn the ire of one of Ms Sturgeon's female detractors - former SNP MP Joanna Cherry. Writing in the Daily Mail, Ms Cherry suggested that she does not expect the former first minister to answer questions that many Scots would want her to. For instance, she said many women as well as lesbian, gay and bisexual people 'will want to know why she was happy to throw our rights under the bus in the name of identity politics'. In concluding her opinion piece, she had added: 'I very much doubt the answers to any of these questions will be in Nicola Sturgeon's autobiography.' Ms McDermid and Ms Sturgeon have been friends ever since the crime writer was interviewed by the former first minister at the Edinburgh International Book Festival. Ms McDermid invited Ms Sturgeon and her then husband Peter Murrell to dinner first 'to break the ice' she said, and the evening went to so well the guests stayed until after midnight. In January, The Mail revealed Ms Sturgeon had been spending time at a luxury £320,000 flat owned by McDermid and her wife. The former First Minister was spotted leaving the property in Edinburgh's upmarket New Town as her relationship with her husband broke down. That same month, Ms Sturgeon revealed she and Mr Murrell had separated, stating: 'To all intents and purposes we have been separated for some time now and feel it is time to bring others up to speed with where we are.' In the interview, Ms McDermid also shot down speculation that she failed to publish a new novel last year because she was too busy writing Ms Sturgeon's soon to be published memoir, Frankly, to focus on her own work. She said: 'I did not help with it. She did it herself. Truly.' The 70-year-old author instead said the reason she didn't publish a book last year was because she was having back surgery to treat spinal stenosis, which causes intense back pain. Operation Branchform was launched in July 2021 to look into how more than £600,000 of crowdfunding was used by the party - and became one of the longest-running fraud investigations in Police Scotland's history. Former party chief executive Peter Murrell, his wife and former First Minister Nicola Sturgeon along with ex-SNP treasurer Colin Beattie were all investigated by detectives as part of the four-year probe. In March it emerged Ms Sturgeon and Mr Beattie would not face charges over the investigation. Mr Murrell appeared in private at Edinburgh Sheriff Court that same month charged with embezzlement and was bailed after making no plea. He is now rarely seen in public, while Ms Sturgeon has focused on writing her memoir and book reviews.