Salford’s ‘bus pass matador’ has spoken of his shock after a £500,000 cannabis farm was discovered in the loft of his luxury mansion.
Frank Evans, 71 – who has been dubbed ‘Britain’s last bullfighter’ – is currently renting out the £770,000 five-bedroom woodland house in Worsley, Salford.
Police raided the converted railway station master’s house at around 5pm last Wednesday after a tip-off from the public.
Around 650 plants were found in the upstairs of the property – which had been converted into a massive cannabis farm with a bypassed electricity meter.
Frank, who owns around a dozen Salford properties and is currently in the south of Spain preparing for his latest fight, said he was ‘stunned’ by the discovery.
Frank Evans’ house in Worsley where police found a cannabis farm
He told the M.E.N: “It’s very surprising and obviously I’ll need to find out what’s been going on.
“Looking at the type of property it is, it is very big on the top floor and even though it’s off a main road, it’s quite secluded and set back in woodland.
“You can see why it might have been attractive to someone looking to do that.
“I rent a portfolio of properties in the Salford area and I’ve never had any problems like this. I’m stunned to be honest.”
The gated property, the Old Station House, has been rented out for around three years.
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No one has been arrested in relation to the swoop but enquiries are ongoing.
Chief Supt Mary Doyle, head of Salford Police, described the seizure as ‘massively significant’.
She said: “To produce the cannabis criminals often rent residential properties such as flats or suburban houses and as a result may bring violent crime into law-abiding communities.
“That is why we are so determined to tackle this sort of criminality root and branch.
“Our enquiries will now be focused on finding who was responsible for such a large criminal operation.”
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Frank has been flourishing his cape in the ring for around 50 years and is set to compete in Mijas and Seville in the coming weeks, despite turning 70 in 2012.
He retired with a dodgy knee at the age of 65 and has undergone a quadruple heart bypass operation, but made an unlikely return in 2009.
As well as fighting under the name of El Ingles – The Englishman – Frank was a winger with Sale rugby union club for eight years.
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Shock of Salford's 'bus pass matador' after £500k cannabis farm is discovered in the loft of his ...
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