Cannabis grower caught by drone claims he was forced to work to pay back illegal entry into UK

A cannabis grower who was caught running two separate farms says traffickers threatened his family in Albania if he did not pay back more of the money he owed them.

Oresti Shpata, 32, claims he was “placed” in two houses to grow cannabis so he could pay back £22,000 more quickly than his job at car washes allowed. Shpata was first arrested by police at a house in Lancashire, where he was growing 148 cannabis plants, worth at least £30,000.

Teesside Crown Court heard that Shpata answered the front door to police acting on a tip on March 29, 2022. The court heard that Shpata “ran through the house, up into the loft, before climbing onto the roof and running along neighbouring roofs. He jumped from the roof onto an outbuilding. He was chased through allotment gardens before being found in a ditch.”

Prosecutor Paul Abrahams said Shpata also allegedly bypassed the electricity supply. “He told police he had been living in the house for a month. That he had been placed there to grow cannabis plants and that he owed £22,000.”

But a few months later, after staying in a hotel and working in car washes, Shpata was arrested growing another cannabis plantation in Middlesbrough. He remained under investigation by police.

Mr Abrahams told the court that police raided the house after “drone footage showed a significant heat source coming from the roof of the property”. 104 plants were found, worth between £30,000 and £89,000 when they were being sold on the street. There was powerful lighting with reflectors, timers and ventilation installed.

Shpata said he was “put in this house because of the debt he had”. The court heard that the Home Office was likely to return Shpata to Albania, under an agreement between the UK and the Albanian government, where the crimes were committed.

Shpata, of Outram Street, Middlesbrough, admitted producing cannabis. He has no previous convictions. In mitigation, Nicci Horton said her client had come to the UK illegally “for an exorbitant amount of money, to the people who arranged his transport”.

“When he arrived, he was able to repay some of the money he had earned working in car washes, but he was pressured to pay off his debt quickly enough.

“He was placed in a house in Accrington. He was taken in a white van to Middlesbrough. The two cannabis farms were already set up when he arrived.”

Ms Horton said it was “suggested” to Shpata that “if the money was not repaid quickly something would happen to his family back in Albania”. The court heard that Shpata had asked to be repatriated to Albania.

Judge Timothy Stead told him: “You were involved as a gardener in the cultivation of cannabis. The quantities of plants in each house were significant. It was said that there was pressure or threat on you. That is accepted.”

Shpata was sentenced to 16 months in prison. The judge said he could be sent back to Albania before the end of his sentence.

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