Denise Marie Laurie, 47, has pleaded guilty to cultivating cannabis.
A South Canterbury woman was caught with 65 cannabis plants in her home after another occupant threatened police with a gun during a welfare check. Police executed a search warrant at the address to locate the firearm, instead uncovering a cannabis-growing setup in Denise Marie Laurie s bedroom and 161 grams of harvested head split between glass jars and re-sealable bags. Laurie, 47, pleaded guilty to cultivating cannabis when she appeared before Judge Dominic Dravitzki in the Timaru District Court on Tuesday. Police prosecutor Jessica Brough told the court police were visiting Laurie s address for a welfare check when an “unknown occupant” threatened them with a gun on Rocky Gully Rd, Albury, on January 10, 2021.