Cannabis grower hid behind curtain as police raided disused Stoke shop

A cannabis grower tried to evade police by hiding behind a curtain.

Ronaldo Sela, 26, was arrested when officers forced their way into a disused shop on Bagnall Road, Milton, on 13 December last year.

More than 100 mature cannabis plants were found inside two separate rooms that had been rigged as part of what police described as "an active grow'.

They were being powered on a 24-hour timer using more than 40 separate lights and 39 electrical transformers.

The electricity inside the building had been bypassed and was set-up dangerously to power the grow on a constant basis.

When he was arrested, Sela, of Reading, admitted to cultivating cannabis and was sent to court.

He appeared at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court and was sentenced to 20-months imprisonment.

Sergeant Chris Gifford, of Stoke-on-Trent North local policing team, said: “We want to make it clear that drug cultivation in Staffordshire will not be tolerated.

“These grows are often run by sophisticated criminal groups who profit from careers in crime.

"They steal electric, set-up dangerous rigs that are significant fire safety hazards and blight vulnerable people in local communities.

“We’re committed to acting on local people’s concerns, proactively targeting organised crime across Staffordshire and tackling the issues that affect residents and businesses the most.”