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National
Tom Beattie

Drug lord told to hand over £300,000 after converting Peterlee office block into cannabis farm

A drug gang leader has been ordered to pay £300,000 after he was jailed for converting a County Durham office block into a massive cannabis farm.

Samir Baghdadi was handed a Confiscation Order of £304,028 as part of a Proceeds of Crime hearing at Leeds Crown Court on Monday (December 19). The court heard that Baghdadi had benefited from his crimes after an investigation by Durham Constabulary found around 400 cannabis plants during a raid on Ridgemount House, in Peterlee town centre, in 2020.

The 55-year-old had converted two-storeys of the landmark building for use as a drug farm, complete with sleeping quarters, food supplies and cooking utensils on one floor and cannabis plants on another.

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