Man jailed following discovery of cannabis farm in Billingham

Kasem Gjana, of Hampton Road, Haringey in London, was located inside the property on Raglan Terrace that contained almost 400 plants.

The 39-year-old was detained by police and arrested on suspicion of producing a controlled drug.

His arrest came after officers received information that a cannabis farm was growing at the address.

The court heard that a police drone had detected a significant amount of heat coming from the property leading officers to obtain a warrant.

At approximately 8.45am on Saturday 11 May police attended to the property with Gjana attempting to flee before being handcuffed.

A search of the home found that cannabis was growing in every one of the four rooms on the first floor while Gjana was living on the ground floor.

While police discovered equipment including powered lights, extractors and fans were being stored on the second floor believed to be in preparation to receive the next crop of plants.

Despite Gjana answering no comment to all questions put to him in custody, he was charged.

On Friday 6 December Gjana was sentenced at Teesside Crown Court and told he will serve three years and six months in prison.

PC Lee Swainston, from Stockton’s neighbourhood policing team, said: “Thanks to information received from members of the community, along with some excellent police work, we have been able to remove a significant quantity of drugs and make an arrest which has led to Gjana being inprisioned.

“The production and subsequent supply of cannabis is linked to serious and organised crime and can often bring along anti-social behaviour, violence and exploitation of vulnerable adults and children.

“It can also be extremely dangerous to grow cannabis, for the house itself and surrounding properties, including the risk of a fire.

“Growing cannabis is not a victimless crime and we encourage members of the public to keep reporting information so we can continue to take this action.”

There are a number of signs that could indicate that a property is being used as a cannabis farm, including:

• A strong and sickly-sweet smell
• Equipment to grow cannabis being taken into a property, such as lighting and ventilation equipment
• Constantly covered or blocked-off windows – cannabis farms often have constantly closed curtains, black-out blinds or foil coverings
• People coming and going at all hours or neighbours you never see
• Strong and constant lighting day and night
• High levels of heat and condensation – cannabis farms often give off heat and the windows stay misted up
• A constant buzz of ventilation – listen out for a whirring sound as the growers try to create an ideal climate for cannabis plants to grow
• Lots of power cables – offenders often dig underground to lay cables that hook up to things like lamp posts so they do not have to pay for the enormous amounts of electricity they use.

Anyone who believes a cannabis farm is being produced or has information is encouraged to contact Cleveland Police on 101 or visit our website. Information can also be provided anonymously by calling Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.