The Chronicle (South Tyneside and Durham)
Cannabis farmer caught trying to escape via roof
COURT TOLD ALBANIAN HAD ARRIVED IN UK ILLEGALLY
AN Albanian cannabis farmer has been advised by a judge to tell any compatriots thinking of following him to the UK illegally it is likely to lead to exploitation and debt to criminal gangs.
Mahmut Selimaj came to this country unlawfully and a court heard he “naively” thought he could work hard and earn a decent wage. But he ended up owing money to those who had brought him here.
Newcastle Crown Court heard that rendered him vulnerable to exploitation and he was put in a cannabis farm in Northumberland and told to look after it.
On December 22 last year, police forced entry to a commercial property in Ashington and, as they did so, Selimaj was seen exiting by pushing out roof tiles and climbing through the roof. He was arrested and police found 173 cannabis plants in the process of being grown.
The court heard the 26-year-old had entered the UK illegally. He made a claim for asylum in 2022 but after a lack of compliance with the asylum process the claim was withdrawn and he has no legal basis for being here.
Andrew Walker, defending, said: “He didn’t come to the UK to sit in a house as part of somebody else’s criminal enterprise.
“He naively hoped he could work hard for reasonable pay but those who come to this country are often indebted and their indebtedness often renders them fit for exploitation.
“He doesn’t resist any attempt to return him to his native Albania. He believes he has signed papers which will affect that once his sentence is served.
Selimaj pleaded guilty to producing cannabis and was jailed for six months.
Recorder Toby Hedworth KC told him: “You came to the UK unlawfully but I’m satisfied you came with a view of conducting a legitimate life here and working hard.
“Unfortunately as the courts know only too well, the debt that’s so often connected to bringing you into the UK unlawfully means you are vulnerable to exploitation by the same criminal gangs and that, I am satisfied, is what happened in your case.
“Given the length of time you have served on remand, it’s likely you will be released in the very near future.
“I would also anticipate you will then be repatriated to Albania as soon as possible.
“But it will also give you the opportunity to tell others in Albania that travelling to the UK unlawfully is likely to lead not only to substantial debt to criminal gangs but also to them being exploited in the same way that you were and that they would be much better advised not to try to come here.”