Jailed cannabis gardener tried to hide among plants in Mansfield Woodhouse home

Jon Ball
By Jon Ball
Published 20th Mar 2023, 11:36 BST
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A cannabis gardener who tended to a large grow inside a Mansfield Woodhouse home has been jailed – after he was found hiding among the plants.

Ardi Salikaj was discovered in one of four rooms being used to house the drugs after police raided the property on Beech Tree Avenue.

Members of Nottinghamshire Police’s Mansfield neighbourhood policing team executed the warrant on January 31, after “receiving intelligence of a drug operation inside”.

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After forcing entry into the house, police found dozens of plants in the living room.

More than 50 cannabis plants were found growing across two bedrooms upstairs at the property in Mansfield Woodhouse, with about 80 more also discovered in the loft.More than 50 cannabis plants were found growing across two bedrooms upstairs at the property in Mansfield Woodhouse, with about 80 more also discovered in the loft.
More than 50 cannabis plants were found growing across two bedrooms upstairs at the property in Mansfield Woodhouse, with about 80 more also discovered in the loft.

More than 50 more plants were then found growing across two bedrooms upstairs, with another 80 more also discovered in the loft.

A search of the loft revealed 30-year-old Salikaj, hiding between the lines of cannabis.

Police also said the electricity at the property “had been dangerously bypassed to power the grow”.

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Salikaj was arrested and charged and has now been jailed for eight months at Nottingham Crown Court after admitting the production of cannabis.

Ardi Salikaj, aged 30, of Beech Tree Avenue, Mansfield Woodhouse, was jailed for eight months after admitting the production of cannabis.Ardi Salikaj, aged 30, of Beech Tree Avenue, Mansfield Woodhouse, was jailed for eight months after admitting the production of cannabis.
Ardi Salikaj, aged 30, of Beech Tree Avenue, Mansfield Woodhouse, was jailed for eight months after admitting the production of cannabis.
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PC Luke Bettridge, of Nottinghamshire Police, said: “Proactive warrants are a key part of the preventative work we do to tackle drug offences and other crimes.

“We don’t want to see drug operations like this anywhere near our communities, which is precisely why we work so hard to shut them down.

“The production and supply of illegal drugs is an incredibly serious matter, including those who grow and deal cannabis.

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“Cannabis production is not a victimless crime – it attracts nothing but trouble, often has links to wider criminality and poses a dangerous fire risk too.

“We don’t want to see this on our streets, so were happy to shut this grow down.”