A DRUGS factory worker has been jailed for 15 months after he was caught tending a £65,000 grow capable of yielding seven kilos of skunk cannabis.
Albania national Ali Rrahmanaj had entered the United Kingdom illegally and found himself “in extremis” because he wasn’t able to find legitimate employment, his solicitor advocate said.
Rrahmanaj, 37, of no fixed address was sentenced at Bradford Crown Court on a video link to HMP Leeds where he was remanded in custody.
He pleaded guilty to production of 133 cannabis plants at Warley Street, Halifax, on October 20.
Julian White said in mitigation that he had been exploited to a degree because of his vulnerable situation.
“He was in extremis at the time,” Mr White told the court.
Judge Ahmed Nadim conceded that there was an element of exploitation in the case, with Rrahmanaj encouraged to do the work for little financial gain by those that had set up the cannabis farm.
