A cannabis farmer who claimed he was being used as a “slave” has been jailed after police found him growing “industrial” quantities of the drug in a “booby-trapped” former court building.
Ilidion Brahaj, 20, was one of four suspects who fled via a fire door when officers executed the warrant in Runcorn on November 25 last year. Patrick Gartland, prosecuting at Chester Crown Court on Friday, said that once inside the abandoned former Runcorn Magistrates’ Court building, police found a cannabis farm spread across seven zones over three floors with 1,022 plants in total in various states of processing such as growing or drying.
Officers spotted four males “running from a fire door”, and gave chase onto Northway where they caught and arrested Brahaj. The other three males vanished from sight and evaded arrest.
READ MORE: King Charles' tribute to 'darling Mama' and 'dear late Papa'
A search of Brahaj discovered an iPhone and a wallet containing £28.
The cannabis farm occupied three floors of the building including four courtrooms on the ground floor, plus “nursery” grows in the holding cells in the cellar.
Part of the court was being occupied as “living quarters” with a “living room, kitchen and bedroom” containing mobile phones and personal belongings.
The electricity supply had been bypassed and one of the internal doors had been “booby-trapped” with the prosecutor arguing it should be classed as a “danger” or a “weapon” and an aggravating feature when considering what sentence to pass.
Mr Gartland said the farm’s total yield was between 28.6kg and 85.8kg, with an estimated value of between £114,000 for wholesale and “just over £1m” once packed and sold as street deals.
In interview with Cheshire Police officers, Brahaj said he had been “tricked” into working in the farm to pay off a £25,000 debt to people who transported him to England.
Mr Gartland said: “He stated he was a labourer and slave taken there by force.
“He stated when he came to England there was an agreement he wouldn’t pay the £25,000 up-front but by working an honest living, then stated he was emotionally and physically abused at an initial location, and thereafter moved to the Runcorn court site.
“He stated he was kept there as a slave against his will and made to be a waterer.”
Mr Gartland added: “He stated he never left the building in the three months he was there and wasn’t allowed to leave and was locked in.”
Judge Michael Leeming cast doubt on this claim as by Brahaj’s own admission he fled through an unlocked fire door.
Brahaj initially pleaded not guilty to producing the Class B drug cannabis on the grounds he was a victim of modern slavery, but Mr Gartland said a “single competent authority” decision - a type of ruling issued by the Home Office - rejected that in July.
By that time in any case, Mr Gartland said the 20-year-old had indicated he intended to change his plea to guilty on a basis, which he did on the day of trial on August 10.
The charge covered growing cannabis from September 1 to the day of his arrest.
He had no previous convictions in the UK or Albania.
The basis of plea was he “voluntarily fled from Albania” to England at the age of 18 for a “better life” after he had “run up a large debt” back home in Albania for living costs and he wanted to earn cash to send back to his family, who were being “subjected to violence and threats” because of his father’s job and because of his family’s political views about the running of the country.
David Rose, defending, said his client was of previous good character and had spent nine-and-a-half months in custody on remand.
He noted Brahaj’s “youth”, and said Brahaj’s father’s problems in Albania were due to him “tackling corruption in the gambling industry”.
Mr Rose said his client had a “good family” but “made a dreadfully stupid decision to get involved with criminality and he bitterly regrets that”, adding he was “remorseful”
He said Brahaj was “intelligent” and wanted to gain an education while in prison.
Judge Leeming said he would stay "faithful" to Brahaj's basis of plea that he was being “exploited” by an “organised crime group”, though he was “cautious to accept” Brahaj was unable to leave the former court building.
He sentenced Brahaj to two years in a young offenders institute to be served immediately.
Aggravating features included the bypassed electricity supply as well as the “booby-trap”.
Brahaj had also refused to provide police with the pin passcode to his phone, which hindered police efforts to identify others involved in the cannabis plot or directing it.
Judge Leeming said Brahaj’s culpability of “lesser role” and he had acted under “pressure, coercion or intimidation” with “no influence on those higher up in the chain”.
Judge Leeming said Brahaj must have been aware of the “booby-trap” although there was no suggestion he had set it up himself.
He said: “One of the internal doors had been booby-trapped to prevent entry to the building.I’ve seen evidence of that.
“It would seem that was to prevent entry rather than exit from the building.
“It’s not clear what the booby-trap is but clearly somebody thought it was a good idea to put such a device in position to alert those inside in the event of a raid.”
Describing the farm, Judge Leeming said: “An investigation discovered a cannabis-growing operation in seven zones across the three floors of the former magistrates’ court.
“I’ve seen the plans of the building uploaded on the digital case system.
“There was a large L-shaped nursery room on the first floor, four drying rooms in the courtrooms on the ground floor, a further nursery room in the holding cells in the cellar, living quarters where you were inside: a living room, kitchen, bedroom.”
Brahaj was assisted by an interpreter for the hearing, although Judge Leeming noted he was understood to have a “good command of English”.
Chester Crown Court heard Halton (Runcorn) Magistrates’ Court shut in 2017. It has since slipped into dereliction and remains vacant..
The building, known variously as Runcorn Magistrates' Court, Halton Magistrates' Court and The Court House, is directly next door to Runcorn Police Station, and was shut as part of a Government cost-cutting exercise.
Receive our weekly Runcorn and Widnes newsletter and breaking news email alerts by signing up here.
READ NEXT:
Princess Kate inherits Princess Diana's title
All the cancellations and closures in Merseyside after Queen's death
Updates as King Charles addresses the nation
Stunning 1950s images capture The Queen at Aintree Racecourse
King Charles praised as thrilled fan kisses his cheek on Buckingham Palace arrival
