Ipswich: Immigrants are jailed for huge drugs operation run from upmarket house in Henley Road
A police cordon at the property in Henley Road, Ipswich, where 1,500 cannabis plants were found - Credit: Archant
Two illegal immigrants who were involved in a huge cannabis farm in an upmarket house in Ipswich have each been jailed for 30 months.
Thirteen rooms of the large detached house in Henley Road had 767 plants growing in them with an estimated street value of £1million.
Before Ipswich Crown Court were Blerim Mema, 21, and Graci Fekolari, 29, both of Henley Road, and who admitted producing cannabis on February 14 this year.
Jailing the men, Judge John Holt said they had been involved in a “sophisticated and elaborate cannabis farm”.
He said the eight bedroom house had been rented for £7,700 a month from October 1 2013 and the rent was up to date when police raided the premises on February 14.
He said the wholesale value of the cannabis was estimated at between £100,000 and £500,000 with an estimated street value of £1m.
“You are both illegal immigrants from Albania and you were both looking after this operation for five months. It was a skilled task and you were motivated by financial advantage,” said the judge.
He said Mema had told police he was paid £200 a month and had been promised a bonus when the crop was harvested. On a previous occasion the court heard that the defendants were found hiding among the plants when police raided the premises.
Steven Dyble, for Fekolari, said his client had come to the UK looking for a better life and had been exploited by the organisers of the cannabis operation.
Most Read
- 1 Double-decker bus bought on eBay becomes new home for evicted Suffolk family
- 2 Body of woman found in river in Hadleigh
- 3 Man who sexually assaulted toddler in the street could be jailed
- 4 Ipswich entrepreneur to appear on ITV show
- 5 Road closure 'chaos' for residents during fibre works
- 6 Suffolk woman describes 'brutal, shocking' unprovoked train attack
- 7 Staff shortages hit 98% of firms, including Suffolk hotels and restaurants
- 8 Ipswich resident charged £400 by rogue trader to pressure wash driveway
- 9 Revealed: The most isolated villages in Suffolk
- 10 First cases of monkeypox reported in Suffolk
Charles Myatt, for Mema, said his client’s dream had been to come to the UK to work legally and it was never his intention to get involved in criminal activity.
The court heard the defendants will automatically be deported after they have served their sentences.
