A family have slammed the police after the home of a 99-year-old gran was searched by officers over drugs den ‘intel’.
Merseyside Police targeted the home of Peggy believing she was living in a cannabis den on the same day one of her son’s was buried.
They had concerns, partly inspired by how warm it was, that it had been taken over by a drugs gang, The Liverpool Echo reported.
The force said extensive efforts were taken prior to the search but the woman’s family have questioned just how much due diligence was carried out.
The family also revealed they were terrified that she had died after the remote cameras alerted them to emergency services attending the property.
Police officers, firefighters and social workers were present as a warrant was executed in Speke on Friday, February 4.
Kath Greatbanks told the ECHO she became aware of the incident at the home of her mum, Peggy, almost immediately through cameras installed after she had suffered a number of falls.
She and other relatives were alerted to the presence of the emergency services and watched in real-time as the home of their mum, who suffers from Alzheimer’s, was filled with strangers without warning.
The 61-year-old, from Widnes, said: “I was on the phone and I thought my mum had gone. That was horrendous.
“The alert went off and there were police there. My brother was panicking and we all thought it was mum.
"We saw police, firefighters and social workers but no ambulance so we thought ‘mum has gone’. That was horrendous.”
Relatives said they were told a heat signal had been picked up that highlighted the house as unusually hot - suggesting it could have been the location of a cannabis farm.
They said they were also told that gangs were known to ‘cuckoo’ properties in the area - meaning they take over the homes of vulnerable people and use them to store, adulterate or sell drugs.
Kath pointed out Peggy, who they did not want to identify further because of her vulnerability, was nearly 100 and her home fell under scrutiny during winter when the heating was on full power to keep her warm.
While she appreciated the fears over cuckooing, she said she could not understand why more research was not done before placing her mum under such stress.
She said: “Why didn’t they ask more questions? It does seem really strange the way they just executed this warrant.
“Because of the vulnerability of mum having Alzheimer’s and other issues it was very unfair, it should not have been done.
“My main concern is that it should not have happened in the first place. What about all those people in the community who are vulnerable and haven’t got families?
“People should be made aware that this could happen to vulnerable people. That is my main thought - that people need to be made aware - and also of the treatment, how it was handled.”
Kath said her family could not understand why efforts were not made to contact them so that at least someone Peggy knew could be present during the search.
The distress was compounded by the incident happening on the day of the funeral of one of Peggy’s sons.
While she was able to attend the service, Kath said she was too tired and anxious to stay for the wake and spend time with her family.
Asked how she was following the incident, Kathy said: “Mum is confused anyway with having Alzheimer’s and she is very distant at the moment.
“I think with my brother passing away and us having to sort this out we have all been upset. It has a big knock-on effect - she gets bothered because she thinks it is all her fault.”
A Merseyside Police spokeswoman said the operation was based on legitimate concerns for Peggy’s welfare.
She said: “We understand the family’s concerns, but would like to stress that we did have a genuine worry for the lady as we believed she could potentially have been a victim of cuckooing.
“Due to the age of the lady and her potential vulnerability, we acknowledged we needed to take a sensitive approach, following receipt of information that there could have been a cannabis farm at the property.
“Extensive enquiries were carried out before visiting the house, and plans put in place to minimise disruption to the lady and her family.
“Contact was made with social services and together we arranged to go and check on the welfare of the occupant of that house, due to the potential dangers involved.
“Three officers attended, supported by social services and Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service, and access was gained to the property without the use of force, using a key code.
“The officers explained why we were there before sensitively carrying out a cursory search. No damage was caused during the search.
“Whilst our officers were there, family attended and advised that the lady was mourning her son and was due to attend his funeral later that day.
“Officers were able to leave safe in the knowledge that the lady was not subject to cuckooing and was not being exploited.
“We have apologised to the family for the timing of our visit, and explained our reasons for it, but I hope people will understand that her safety was our priority from the beginning.
“It is our duty to act on the intelligence we receive to ensure that the most vulnerable people in our community are kept safe from harm.
“We are aware of instances in the Speke area where the homes of vulnerable people have been used for ‘cuckooing’ – where gangs take over to use them for drugs or for the storage of weapons or stolen goods, and it was our belief that this could have been the case with the lady concerned.”
