POLICE found almost $500,000 of cannabis plants in an elaborate hydroponic set-up in a raid on a house in Ebony Avenue, Carlingford, last Wednesday. Castle Hill officers arrested a man, 59, of Marrickville, at the house and charged him with the enhanced indoor cultivation of a commercial quantity of an illegal plant, and electricity theft. He attended Parramatta Local Court on Thursday. Detective Chief Inspector Wayne Murray said the raid came from a tip-off and that the public could help further by keeping an eye out for suspicious activities in their neighbourhoods. ``If you see windows and curtains closed, cars which may come intermittently, mail left in the letterbox, evidence of power being redirected or the air-conditioning running for a long time, please let police know,'' he said.

Any information to: Castle Hill police, 96805399.

Laser arrest

Police arrested a man, 19, over a laser being beamed at a police helicopter from Bella Vista about 6pm last Wednesday. The helicopter was flying at about 500metres when the crew saw a green laser beam directed at them. Using the chopper's spotlight, they pinpointed the origin to the yard of a house in Eastbourne Way, landed on a football oval nearby and called local police. The man was charged with interfering with a crew member while in an aircraft. He was bailed to appear in Hornsby Local Court on the July22. Laws passed through State Parliament last week ban the use of laser pointers in public places without a reasonable explanation.