Cannabis in Polle: Five in pre-trial detention
The Hildesheim Public Prosecutor's Office and the Hameln-Pyrmont/Holzminden Police Inspectorate have issued a supplementary report on investigations into an illegally operated indoor cannabis facility. The focus is on the provisional arrest of five suspects and their subsequent appearance before a court. All accused persons are in pre-trial detention following judicial arrest warrants. The case extends from Polle in the Holzminden district to the Hanover region and is regarded by the authorities as an example of professionally organised illegal cannabis cultivation.
Background to the investigation
Since early February 2026, the Holzminden police commissariat has been conducting investigations under the direction of the Hildesheim Public Prosecutor's Office against an initially unknown group of individuals. The suspicion concerned the illegal cultivation of cannabis in a former restaurant in Polle. In an initial press release, the authorities had already reported the discovery of the plantation and provisional arrests. The supplementary report now provided clarifies previously published information and supplies detailed data on searches, seizures and detention decisions.
Polle is located in southern Lower Saxony and administratively belongs to the Holzminden district. The choice of a disused gastronomy business as a site for an indoor facility corresponds to a pattern that investigators repeatedly observe in drug enforcement: from the outside the building appears inconspicuous, while sophisticated lighting and ventilation technology is operated inside. The Hildesheim Public Prosecutor's Office coordinated the legal aspects of the operation, while the Hameln-Pyrmont/Holzminden Police Inspectorate carried out the operational deployments.
Large-scale operation on 2 July 2026
On Thursday, 2 July 2026, police officers carried out six further search operations in Hildesheim, Lehrte, Seelze and Hanover in addition to the search of the property in Polle. All interventions were based on court warrants issued on application by the Hildesheim Public Prosecutor's Office through the Hildesheim District Court. The simultaneous execution of several searches at different locations suggests a carefully prepared and coordinated investigative strategy.
In the former restaurant in Polle, emergency services discovered an extensive and professionally equipped indoor cannabis plantation. Around 400 cannabis plants and approximately 20 kilograms of already harvested cannabis buds were seized there. Three men were provisionally arrested on the premises. One of them attempted to evade arrest by fleeing but was apprehended in the immediate vicinity. The attempted escape underscores, in the authorities' assessment, the seriousness of the situation for those involved.
During the six further searches in the Hanover region, two more men were provisionally arrested. Emergency services also seized approximately 35 kilograms of already harvested cannabis, at least 40,000 euros in cash and further evidence at those locations. The link between the discovery sites suggests that investigators assume a structure operating across regional boundaries, the exact composition of which still needs to be clarified.
Corrected information on age and quantities
In the supplementary report, the authorities corrected several previously published details. A total of five men aged between 18 and 34 were initially provisionally arrested. The age range of 24 to 54 years cited in the initial report is hereby corrected. According to the current status, emergency services seized a total of around 400 cannabis plants, approximately 55 kilograms of already harvested cannabis, at least 40,000 euros in cash and further evidence. The refinement of the figures is typical of complex investigative proceedings in which evidence can only be fully evaluated after all searches have been completed.
Arrest warrants and pre-trial detention
On application by the Hildesheim Public Prosecutor's Office, the five accused were brought before the competent district court on Friday afternoon, 3 July 2026. Arrest warrants were issued against all five accused and enforced. They were subsequently transferred to correctional facilities and are therefore in pre-trial detention. The detention decision marks a clear escalation in the proceedings and signals that the prosecution considers flight risk, risk of collusion or the gravity of the offence to be present.
Pre-trial detention in narcotics proceedings of this scale is not an unusual step in Germany when there is suspicion of commercial cultivation and trafficking in cannabis. The seized quantities – 400 plants and 55 kilograms of harvested material – far exceed the scope of so-called personal use. Together with the cash seizure of at least 40,000 euros, the evidence supports the suspicion of organised and profit-oriented activity.
Further investigations are ongoing. The Hildesheim Public Prosecutor's Office is examining, among other things, whether further participants can be identified and which distribution channels the allegedly produced drugs may have taken. Media enquiries should be directed exclusively to the Hildesheim Public Prosecutor's Office. Justus Weigel of the press office of the Hameln-Pyrmont/Holzminden Police Inspectorate is available as a contact for police-related matters.
Legal classification
The illegal cultivation of cannabis in professionally equipped indoor facilities falls under the Narcotics Act and is prosecuted as a serious offence when corresponding quantities are involved. The combination of the facility, substantial drug quantities, cash finds and the detention of several accused persons shows that the authorities are not treating the case as minor crime. The coordinated searches at seven locations in Lower Saxony also illustrate the scope of investigative work behind the operation.
For residents in Polle, Hildesheim, Lehrte, Seelze and Hanover, the case above all means one thing: law enforcement authorities are also acting resolutely against illegal drug cultivation in rural and suburban areas. Whether the five accused acted in different roles within the suspected structure will become clear in forthcoming questioning and evaluations. The Hildesheim Public Prosecutor's Office has indicated that clarification of the facts will continue.
