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| Three charged after temple raid | Three charged after temple raid |
| (20 minutes later) | |
| Three men have been charged with drugs offences following a police raid at a Rastafarian temple in south London. | Three men have been charged with drugs offences following a police raid at a Rastafarian temple in south London. |
| Police believed the temple, a 32-room property in St Agnes Place, Kennington was being used as a drugs "market". | Police believed the temple, a 32-room property in St Agnes Place, Kennington was being used as a drugs "market". |
| Up to 100 armed officers raided the property in the early hours of Thursday and arrested 23 people. | Up to 100 armed officers raided the property in the early hours of Thursday and arrested 23 people. |
| Jahlaw Salassie, Roderick Green and Fitzroy Pommel will appear before Camberwell Green magistrates. | |
| Mr Pommel is also charged with two counts of the possession of bullets. | |
| The site was the headquarters of the UK's Rastafarian community. | The site was the headquarters of the UK's Rastafarian community. |
| Constant 'surveillance' | |
| Mr Salassie, 40, Mr Green, 45, and Mr Pommel, 48, have been charged with conspiracy to supply Class C drugs. | |
| Four of the 23 arrested have been cautioned for possession of cannabis, one of whom is still being detained for immigration matters. | |
| Three others are also remanded in custody over immigration issues. | |
| The rest have been bailed pending further inquiries. | |
| Several kilograms of cannabis, some crack cocaine and ammunition were found inside, said police. | |
| The management committee said the centre was no longer used as a temple but the chaplain disputed the claim. | |
| Police said 24-hour surveillance of the centre over the past six months had revealed it was being used as a drugs "market". | |
| Up to 600 people a day visited the centre, mostly buying drugs, according to police. |