Dopey police officers hired a van for a drug bust then returned it forgetting there was a huge haul of cannabis in the back
Plain-clothes officers in Glasgow used rental vehicle for undercover swoop
They called Mitchell's Self-Drive in Rutherglen to collect it from Coatbridge
Driver John McKinnon found bin-bags full of cannabis in the back of van
By Harriet Arkell
PUBLISHED: 09:11 EST, 14 October 2013 | UPDATED: 10:11 EST, 14 October 2013
Police officers who used a rental van to confiscate bin bags full of cannabis gave it back to the hire company with the drugs still inside.
Officers in Glasgow had hired a Mitchells Self-Drive van to be used by plain clothes police in an undercover drugs bust.
But they forgot to clear the haul out of the vehicle before they called the firm to come and pick the van up after the operation, and the rental firm only discovered the mistake when they got it back to their Glasgow depot.
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Stone me: John McKinnon of Mitchell's van hire in Rutherglen found bag-loads of marijuana in the van police rented
John McKinnon, 33, from Mitchell's, said: 'There were bin bags full of cannabis. There was no mistaking what it was. I went running into the office and we phoned the police.
'Straight away, they said someone was going to get their b**** kicked. But it still took them an hour-and-a-half to come back out to collect it.'
Police in Lanarkshire had hired the unmarked van for use by plain-clothes officers in a drugs swoop.
Afterwards, Mr McKinnon was called to the town of Coatbridge to collect the van. As he drove it back to Rutherglen, near Glasgow, he noticed a strong smell of cannabis, but had no suspicion of what was in the back.
The father-of-two said: 'They gave me the keys in a sealed blue bag, walked me out to the van, opened the gates and away I went.
'There was a strong smell of cannabis in the cabin but it was only when I got back to the office and opened up the back that I realised what was in it.
'Ive no idea how I would have gone about explaining what had happened if Id been pulled over during the journey. Its scary.'
Police were called and had to hire the van again so they could take it away and remove the cannabis.
Mr McKinnon said: 'When they turned up, they were asking me how it had happened - they were dumbfounded. But there was no word of an apology or even a thank you for letting them know.
'Im angry that they allowed me to drive it away like that.'
A police spokeswoman said: 'We can confirm that we are investigating a report that a vehicle hired by Police Scotland has been returned allegedly with what is believed to be police productions inside.
'Enquiries are at an early stage to establish the circumstances and it would be inappropriate to comment further.'
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