GNR conducts 6-month investigation to seize 4 cannabis plants

The Territorial Command of the GNR (National Republican Guard) of Setúbal, through the Criminal Investigation Center of Almada, arrested a 30-year-old man in Costa de Caparica on 38 March for “cultivation of narcotics”. In a press release, the GNR announced that “following an investigation that lasted about six months, a house search warrant and a search warrant for a motorcycle were carried out, having been detected, inside the residence, three greenhouses equipped with ventilation/extraction systems for odors and humidity”.

In total, the seizure of:

· 232 doses of cannabis;

· Four cannabis plants;

· A scale;

· Diverse material for cultivation and distribution.

The detainee remained at the premises of the GNR until the 31st of March, to be heard at the Judicial Court of Almada and to apply the coercive measures.

Portugal decriminalized the possession and use of all drugs in 2001, but the purchase, sale and cultivation of cannabis continue to be punishable by law, with hundreds of arrests for small-quantity consumption ending up as court cases for “trafficking of narcotics”. Detainees are rarely actually arrested, being released after being presented to a judge, which represents administrative costs for the State. The GNR makes arrests for possession or cultivation of cannabis in Portugal practically every day.