Man jailed for cannabis farm in his home

A 37-year-old man has been jailed for 12 months at Selkirk Sheriff Court for producing cannabis with a maximum yield of £11,500 at his Berwickshire home.

Anthony Narang or Ferguson pleaded guilty to having a cannabis cultivation at his home in Foulden between May 1 and June 29.

A not-guilty plea to being concerned in the supply of the class-B drug was accepted by the crown.

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The court was told that 119 cannabis plants were discovered during a police raid on the remote property.

Procurator fiscal Graham Fraser said Ferguson had a previous conviction which had resulted in him serving a custodial sentence in England.

He explained: “He lives with his mother at the address, and information came to light that he was in possession of drugs.

“A search warrant was granted, and when police attended, he volunteered the information that there were 60 cannabis plants in the garage.

“Further plants were found in another area of the house.”

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Mr Fraser described it as a “fairly professional” cultivation, with electricity and heating.

He said each plant had an estimated yield of between one and three ounces, which could yield a value of £11,500.

The fiscal said he was unable to tell if they would all mature, but he added: “In the whole circumstances, it is a significant operation.”

Defence lawyer Robert More said that after being on remand for the past four months in connection with this latest offence, Ferguson had utilised the services available to him.

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Sheriff Peter Paterson said: “Given the previous conviction you have, I have no alternative but to impose a custodial sentence.

“I cannot ignore a serious previous conviction like that.

“To manufacture drugs to this level is a serious matter.”

Sheriff Paterson said he would have imposed an 18-month jail sentence but reduced that to six months due to Ferguson’s guilty plea.

He also backdated it to August 23, when Ferguson was first remanded in custody.