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Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
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UK: Couple bought house to grow cannabis
Eastern Daily Press, UK
Friday 08 Sep 2006 A Norfolk couple bought a £100,000 home on a buy-to-let mortgage - to turn it into a cannabis growing “enterprise” for their own use, a court was told. Businessman Paul Clarke, 41 and his wife Sandra, 44, bought the house in Wortham Close, Norwich, and then turned all the rooms over to cannabis production, growing a total of 71 plants in the two bedrooms and using the living room as a drying room for the cannabis, Norwich Crown Court heard. Paul Clarke, who runs Growsystems [Ipswich], used £2000 worth hydroponics equipment from his business to set up a system for the cannabis cultivation. An expert said the total of the cannabis found growing at the address would have fetched a street value of more than £25,000 and be enough to supply two people for between two to four years, the court was told. But their plans were dashed after police raided the address after smelling the drug and found what was described as a commercial enterprise to provide the couple with cannabis for their own use. Paul and Sandra Clarke of Eldrich Way, Chapel Break, Bowthorpe admitted cultivating cannabis. Both were jailed for 26 weeks but Sandra Clarke had her sentence suspended for 18 months. She was also ordered to do 150 hours unpaid work. Judge Simon Barham told them: “You bought a house specially for the purpose of growing a large quantity of cannabis and intended to then sell the house or let it.” He added: “If you had been growing this drug to sell commercially then the sentence would be measured in many years.” He accepted the drug was being grown just for their own use but said: “Only a custodial sentence can be justified because of the sheer volume of this enterprise and the extent to which you went by buying a house to cultivate cannabis.” Greg Perrins, prosecuting, said that when police raided the address it was obvious that the sole purpose of the enterprise was to grow a large amount of cannabis. He said there were 20 flowering plants in one bedroom and 51 plants in another while the living room was used to dry the cannabis. “This was a commercial enterprise to provide them with cannabis for a long period of time.” When arrested the couple accepted the house was not their main residence and they had bought the property on a buy to let mortgage after putting down a £20,000 deposit and then had a mortgage for £85,000. Mr Perrins said the idea was for them to use the property to grow enough cannabis to last them for two years as they planned to freeze dry the drug and use it when necessary. He said they did it so they did not have to buy their cannabis from a dealer. Guy Ayers, mitigating, said Sandra Clarke suffered from depression and anxiety and the couple both felt the drug helped them. “Both realise it is not an excuse for growing it.” He said they had decided to grow their own rather than buy the drug and said: “In terms of involvement they take equal blame.”
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