Two men accused of helping to run a £400,000 cannabis farm have been freed after it emerged they were victims of human trafficking.
Police found Alfred Dimo and Julien Beqaj locked in an industrial unit along with more than 1400 plants.
The men, both from Albania, claimed they were being held against their will and forced to work as “gardeners”.
They were arrested and spent 10 months in prison awaiting trial.
Dimo, 43, and Beqaj, 20, were accused of producing cannabis at the unit in Muirhead, Lanarkshire, on May 4 last year. They were released after pleading not guilty at Airdrie Sheriff Court on Tuesday.
The Crown asked for the case to be deserted after a “conclusive grounds decision” by the Home Office that there was a strong possibility the men had been trafficked.
Police Scotland said the cannabis plants seized had an estimated street value of £284,000 to £424,000.
Eddie Kelly, Dimo’s solicitor, said: “My client is pleased with this decision to end proceedings and intends to return to Albania.”
MSP Rhoda Grant, convener of the Scottish Parliament ’s cross-party group on human trafficking, welcomed the Home Office decision, but insisted more must be done to tackle the “scourge” of trafficking.
She said: “It is a scourge on our society that Scotland appears to be an attractive market for traffickers.
“Law enforcement and government departments need to continue to work together to protect and prevent vulnerable victims from exploitation.”
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