A man has been arrested and charged with alleged drug offences after a cannabis farm was discovered in the former Spean Bridge Hotel.
The hotel, on the A82 near Fort William, has been decried as a 'carbuncle' by locals after years of under-investment and changes in management.
Thought to be owned by a Chinese travel firm, its holding company is controlled by a Mr Ming Liang Chen according to Companies House.
The company, which changed its name from Spean Bridge Hotel Ltd, faced being struck off earlier this year but that action was discontinued on April 20.
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In the latest set of accounts, up to January 31 2023, the company had net liabilities of £337,350 of which £266,000 fell due within the next year.
The hotel is currently closed, with no indication of when it will re-open.
After a police presence was spotted outside of the building, it was discovered that it was being used to grow cannabis.
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “A 34-year-old man has been arrested and charged in connection with drug offences after a cannabis cultivation was discovered within a property on Station Road, Spean Bridge around 11.20am on Saturday, 17 August.
“He is due to appear at Inverness Sheriff Court on Monday, 19 August, 2024.”
It comes after 1,000 cannabis plants were discovered at the Royal Hotel on Allan Street in Blairgowrie earlier this month.
Police confirmed a 27-year-old man had been arrested and charged in connection with drug offences, with cultivations also found at two locations in Dundee.
The Royal Hotel closed in 2020, and Mr Chen is also listed as the sole director of its holding company, Milton Blairgowrie Hotel Ltd.
That company also faced a compulsory strike-off earlier this year which has been discontinued.
Mr Chen is currently the director of 12 companies, and was formerly the sole director of Watermill Hotel Ltd, owner of the Watermill Hotel in Paisley, but that company was struck off in August 2023.
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