two other crack houses in Devonshire and Hamilton Parish in the past week.

Neighbours of the two abandoned properties claimed that neither house was used by drug dealers or users and that Police had targeted the wrong homes.

But yesterday Royal Gazette reporter Gareth Finighan was given a guided tour inside the third abandoned home to be identified as a crack house on Union Street in the back of town area of Hamilton.

And he was left in no doubt that the building had degenerated into a sickening den of illegal sex and drug abuse. Here he gives an account of what he saw.

*** From the outside number 30 Union Street looks like a fairly innocuous building. The paint work may have peeled away, the shutters are hanging from their hinges and the driveway is overgrown with weeds but no doubt it was once a warm and welcoming home.

But while the facade may look rundown and shoddy, it manages to hide an even dirtier secret inside.

Inspector Stuart Crockwell of the Police Task Force led the way as he took me into the building through the rear door. This had once been boarded up, only to be smashed in again by someone looking for a safe lair in which to get a fix.

The first thing that hit me was the rancid smell of human excrement, urine, and stale alcohol, so vile you could almost taste it.

The whole building had been completely gutted. Bare plaster walls were crumbling away and the only covering on the bare concrete floors was a mixture of beer bottles, stinking rubbish and human waste.

The only other items of furniture in the building were several stained, rotting mattresses, evidence that the building was a popular spot for the town's prostitutes to take their clients.

Further evidence of this came when Insp. Crockwell pointed out numerous used condoms littering the floor.

And, if that was not proof enough, we were then greeted with a sight that left me speechless. As we turned a corner into another `room' we were confronted with the sight of a middle aged woman, skirt hitched around her ankles having sex with an elderly man.

The embarrassed couple quickly stood up and, apologising repeatedly, fumbled with their clothes while Insp. Crockwell ordered them out.

"You're lucky I don't book the pair of you right now -- but if I see you in here again I will do,'' he told the pair as they sheepishly scampered out.

Once they had left Insp. Crockwell pointed out further evidence that the rotting shell of the building was a crack den.

The dirty secrets of a crack house A makeshift table -- made from a pane of glass mounted on bricks -- was used by addicts to prepare their drugs. We also found a syringe and various glass bottles that could be used to smoke crack.

I was only in the crack house for a matter of minutes but I don't mind admitting I was glad to get out.

Insp. Crockwell noticed my discomfort.

"Can I get you a glass of water?'' he asked. "We see this stuff all the time so I guess we just get used to it.

"We've raided this place a number of times. If you come her at about 2 a.m.

the place is just smelling of fresh crack.'' Public Safety Minister Maxwell Burgess was also visiting the site. He was clearly repulsed by what he saw.

"I used to think I was pretty street wise,'' he said.

"But there are two sides to Bermuda and seeing this made me realise that I was living on the other side. It was a real eye opener and it made me feel sick. It amazes me to see the depths that some people will sink to.'' "If I do appear energised it's because, once you see something like this, you realise that it is just not acceptable and it cannot be allowed to go on.''