A man paid £100 a day to maintain a cannabis farm inside a terraced house tried to hide from police by climbing onto the roof, a court has heard. Etmond Lika, 32, was brought from Albania and put in the house where he was tasked with looking after cannabis plants as they grew.
On February 24 this year, a locksmith was asked to change the locks at a property, reports The Echo. Christopher Hopkins, prosecuting, said: “He noticed what he thought was a cannabis installation at the property and called the police. He thought someone was inside.”
Police searched the property and found 200 cannabis plants growing in six rooms that over the six rooms in what was described as “plainly a sophisticated operation”.
Lika attempted to hide from the police by climbing through a skylight and lying on the roof, but was captured and arrested. Mr Hopkins said: “Lika had been employed by somebody to manage or run this installation whether that was tending to the plants or whatever else was required.”
Lika said he came to the UK via a boat across the channel in September last year, in the hope of gaining better economic opportunities. Lika said he paid 5,000 euros for the trip. Mr Hopkins said: “The Crown frankly knows nothing else about this defendant”.
Olivia Beesley, defending, said her client was offered £100 a day to live at the property, and left Albania for economic reasons. She said: “He wants to work but he knows now that he should have done so through proper channels.
“He simply wishes to receive his sentence with grace and understands he must be punished for this kind of offending.” She said he requested an English Language course while in custody, and was homeless for a week prior to this offence.
Ms Beesley also detailed that Lika said he had no previous convictions. Judge Brian Cummings KC said: “You entered this country illegally, little or nothing is known about you. I note what was said in the case summary by reference to your police interview, and I quote: ‘It was difficult to get an answer out of him, he continuously changed his account throughout the interview’."
Lika was sentenced to two years and four months imprisonment, and forfeiture and destruction of the drugs and paraphernalia was ordered.
