Vietnamese man Thang Nguyen, 38, paid £20 wage for house-sitting cannabis factory  

A MAN put in charge of an industrial cannabis farm built in a four-storey home received just £20 in wages from his unknown boss.

Thang Nguyen, 38, paid £15,000 to come to the United Kingdom from his native Vietnam to find work, Swansea Crown Court heard.

But when he arrived in London and could not, plans were made that he would be driven to an address in Swansea to house-sit a cannabis factory. He was paid just £20 for three weeks' work looking after the 436 plants growing in a house in Rosehill Terrace, Mount Pleasant.

The four-storey property had been rented by a man who gave his name as Mr Khan and provided a Cardiff address, prosecuting barrister Frank Phillips said.

Police searched the house after reports from the letting agent that another house rented by Mr Khan had changed the locks and agents became suspicious of plant pots piled outside.

Inside the Rosehill Terrace property, officers found 2ft to 3ft plants in various rooms around the house.

They also found the electricity meter had been bypassed and 74 lights and 64 transformers had been installed to keep the plants alive.

In his police interview, Nguyen, of no fixed address, told the court the factory had already been set up when he arrived and that he did not know the name of the owner. He said instructions were sent to him weekly. Nguyen also admitted being an illegal immigrant.

Ian Wright, for Nguyen, said his client had pleaded guilty to producing cannabis at the first opportunity. He said Nguyen's wife and child remained in Vietnam and he wanted to return to them. Nguyen had come to the UK after his family's farm had began struggling financially.

Judge Keith Thomas said he accepted someone else had set up the factory and that Nguyen's role was as a gardener.

"This was a large operation involving 436 mature plants, that's a substantial number and larger than this court normally experiences in residential properties," said the judge.

He imposed a jail term of 20 months.

www.thisissouthwales.co.uk 10/04/2013