A man caught growing nearly £10,000 worth of cannabis in his bedroom has been spared jail.
Allan Booth appeared at Peterhead Sheriff Court for sentencing yesterday after admitting producing the Class B drug at a house in Hatton.
The court heard the 25-year-old was caught with 11 cannabis plants in the bedroom of 20 Quarry Road in the Buchan village.
Fiscal depute Lixia Sun told the court yesterday: “At 11.10am on October 12, a group of police officers attended the locus on a wanted persons inquiry.
“While at the address, officers detected a strong smell of cannabis on the premises. Officers requested he open the door, this was refused and officers heard items being moved inside the property.”
Miss Sun said “specialist officers” were called to access the house and that during a search, various items used in the production of the drug were found.
Officers found 11 plants growing in pots in a tent in the bedroom as well as a holdall containing 8.8lbs of a “green substance”. This was later tested and found to be cannabis.
Each of the 11 plants was worth between £250 and £900.
Defending Booth, solicitor Sam Milligan said when sentencing his client, Sheriff Andrew Miller should consider that the value of the plants on the day of the raid and not their potential worth.
Sheriff Miller said: “You’ve pleaded guilty to cultivating cannabis and I need to sentence you for what you’ve been prosecuted for, not anything else.
“You clearly went to some trouble to ensure this cultivation process was up and running and I also note your records – which indicate various different types of offences including drug offences – do have a similar offence from some years ago.”
Booth was slapped with a 12-month community payback order. He is under a supervision order, and will be forced to do 180 hours of unpaid work in the community.
This was reduced from 270 hours due to Booth’s early plea.
However Sheriff Miller warned Booth he was be facing prison if he failed to complete the order, or appeared in the dock again.
A 19-year-old co-accused also appeared in court yesterday in connection with the haul. Liam Cordiner’s plea of not guilty was accepted by the fiscal depute.
