Shopkeeper Has Been Secretly Growing Cannabis in his Award-Winning Displays for Years
A hemp shopkeeper in a small town called Glastonbury in Somerset, England has a little secret behind the beautiful baskets of flower arrangements that have adorned his shop for almost 20 years. According to www.express.co.uk, the man has changed his name to Free Cannabis.
Free Cannabis planted the seeds outside of his shop in a planter that was owned by the council, and he even claimed that others, including those in the council, would come by and drop their own seeds into the planters. He then claimed that they were watered by nature.
A member of the public noticed the illegal plants and reported Free Cannabis’ shop to the authorities, who then removed the plant. PC Stuart Ball is the Beat Manager for Glastonbury. “The small, single plant was removed by the council on Tuesday, having been found in a council-owned basket,” Ball said, “Cannabis is a controlled substance and we would take a vigorous approach to anyone found growing it for supply purposes.”
In regards to the plant’s removal, Free Cannabis said, “I am amazed that people get so excited about this, it’s a sad reflection of society’s hemp-phobia.”
Back in 1988, Free Cannabis won the Glastonbury in Bloom Award. Once it was discovered that this award-winning display featured cannabis plants, he received a 12-month conditional discharge.
Free Cannabis sells legal forms of hemp in his shop, however he believes the reefer madness over cannabis is something that needs to end. “It’s insane that a plant that is so beneficial—it’s used in the treatment of cancer, MS, arthritis and pain management—is illegal,” he said. “This is why people end up dealing it illegally and end up becoming criminalized. It’s insane when there are no recorded fatalities.”
