Albanian man jailed after Pembroke Dock cannabis farm raid

Ervis Kerciku pleaded guilty to producing cannabis when he appeared at Swansea Crown Court.

The court heard that Dyfed-Powys Police raided an address in on Treowen Road in Pennar on April 10. The defendant was found inside.

The address had four rooms which had been converted in to grow rooms, prosecutor Sian Cutter said, with 358 plants of varying levels of maturity found.

Ms Cutter said the plants could have produced between 10 and 30 kilograms of cannabis, which could have been sold on the street for up to £156,000.

Western Power confirmed that the electricity had been bypassed at the address, and officers found humidifiers, heaters, lights and timers in the grow rooms.

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Kerciku was arrested, and it was later confirmed by the police that he was wanted by the Home Office after he had previously absconded.

In interview, he said he was working at the address to pay off debts, and that he was only allowed out of the address when accompanied by another man, who he named as ‘Bisher’.

Kerciku told officers he had been there for five months, and that he feared for his and his family’s safety, Ms Cutter said.

The court heard that he had no previous convictions in England and Wales or in Albania.

Ervis Kerciku was found growing cannabis at a home in Pembroke Dock. (Image: Dyfed-Powys Police)

Dean Pulling, in mitigation, said: “Like so many others in his position, the defendant came to the United Kingdom in search of a better life.

“He entered the country illegally in 2022 and found himself in Birmingham.

“Because of his status, he found it difficult to find legitimate work.”

Mr Pulling said Kerciku “found himself a target” of criminal gangs, in particular those run by Albanians, as a result of not being able to find work.

In 2023, he borrowed £4,000 “in order to survive” from a man named ‘Bisher’.

“Not long after that, he was told he had to pay the money back working in this house in Pembroke Dock,” Mr Pulling said.

“He was taken to the address and given instructions in what to do. He was instructed to look after the plants which had already been planted and were already growing there.

“Although the property was not locked, he was told not to go out as to not draw attention to the property, so he didn’t.

“The defendant tells me that it was no life at all.

“He said he always lived a law-abiding life in his motherland. He is educated and has a degree in business management. It was economic pressures that brought him to the United Kingdom.”

Judge Huw Rees jailed Kerciku for 12 months.