A MAN who was questioned by police after a drugs raid on his home says there is no way he will stop smoking pot.
Keith Thompson, 53, was taken to Wootton Bassett police station on Tuesday after officers found eight cannabis plants in a bedroom at his home.
He was released without charge and Mr Thompson, who says the drugs were for his own use, insists he will carry on as usual.
"I'm not going to stop smoking, no way man," he said.
"It's more common than people think and it's not just clowns like me.
"Within an hour of being out I was smoking again.
"I personally think if we all sat around a table and rolled up there would be no wars or punch-ups.
"We could all put on some Pink Floyd and there we go.
"Okay, I have broken the law but it's not the crime of the century."
Mr Thompson's wife, Annie, 45, was also arrested in the raid at their home in The Rosary, Wootton Bassett, but he says she had nothing to do with the plants.
"If I'd have known the police arrest everyone in the house when they come I would never have grown it," he said.
"It's all mine. It's nothing whatsoever to do with the wife.
"She is giddy enough on a couple of pints of lager."
The police said the seizure of the drugs would stop cannabis getting onto the streets of Wootton Bassett.
But the dad-of-two, who has smoked cannabis regularly since 1975, said: "It was no factory. I'm not a dealer, I was just growing it for myself.
"It's one thing smoking it and another thing dealing it.
"It sounds stupid but I'm against drugs. I don't go near pills or anything like that.
"You couldn't find anyone on the planet who I have sold drugs to."
He says he smokes between 10 and 12 rolled-up joints a day and started growing his own drugs because he was smoking between £80 and £100 worth of cannabis a week.
"I decided it'd be cheaper to grow my own," he said.
"I bought a cheap car, sold it on and bought myself some heating lamps with the money."
Registered disabled for problems with his lower back and hip, Mr Thompson says his drug use has nothing to do with his ill health.
"When people say they do it because of the pain I'm not sure that's true," he said.
"I'm not going to hide behind that. I smoke it because I like it."
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article