Fly-tippers dump cannabis-growing equipment and plants on the edge of the Harborough district

Fly-tippers who have dumped cannabis-growing equipment and plants in Harborough are being hunted by council investigators.

The pile of domestic rubbish and drugs paraphernalia was tipped in countryside in Covert Lane, Scraptoft, on the northern edge of the district.

Harborough council’s dedicated environmental crime unit is now scouring the waste for vital clues in a bid to pinpoint the offenders.

The specialist team has launched an urgent probe after an appalled passer-by tipped off the local authority.

The ugly blot on the landscape has now been removed by the council.

A council spokesman said: “The fly-tip was reported by a member of the public via our online tip-off address and was cleared the next day.

“We take fly-tipping very seriously in the district and we would appeal for any information people may have about this incident.”

He added: “We would remind people that if they do not dispose of their rubbish legally they can face a fine of £300 or more.

“Always check that anyone removing rubbish from your home has a valid waste carrier’s licence by looking on the Environment Agency website.”

You can alert the council to fly-tipping by emailing [email protected]

The cannabis-growing kit was dumped days before police raided a “large scale cannabis factory” in Bruntingthorpe, near Lutterworth.

Officers found over 100 cannabis plants at an industrial unit at Walton New Road Business Park in the village just after 11.30am on Monday (November 2).

They swooped on the site after being tipped off by suspicious villagers.

Two men aged 55 and 32, both of Bedford, were arrested on suspicion of cultivation of cannabis.