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A cannabis farm was found in an abandoned pub near the police station in Mount Pleasant, Swansea.
The farm was operating in a disused pub just 100m away from Swansea’s main police station. It contained up to £50k worth of drugs and has been described as ‘sophisticated.’
Two men found working on the farm were Albanian nationals who had been smuggled into the country. They were found to be 28-year-old Elson Kryemadhi and 53-year-old Arben Matrapaei. One had served 16 years inside an Italian prison for supplying heroin.
A third man was arrested after driving away from the scene and remains under investigation.
Swansea Crown Court heard police officers were called to Mountain Dew public house in Mount Pleasant on May 6 after reports of suspicious activity. They found 190 plants in various forms, alongside numerous items of growing equipment.
Both men admitted producing cannabis, with Kryemadhi having no previous convictions.
Giving the defendants a one-third discount for their guilty pleas, Judge Paul Thomas QC sentenced Kryemadh to 12 months in prison and Matrapaei to two years. Each man will serve up to half of those sentences in custody before being released on licence.
The judge said what would happen to the defendants upon their release was a matter for the immigration authorities.
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