Court slaps Briton with 7-year sentence for cannabis farm

By Constantinos Psillides

A 51-year old man from Britain was sentenced to seven years imprisonment by the Paphos Assize Court, on charges of growing cannabis plants with the intent to distribute.

The Peyia resident was arrested on March 9 at Kathikas village while on his way to tend to 69 cannabis plants later found at a location near the village. The defendant claimed that his only involvement was to water the plants for €700 per month and that he only agreed to it because he was in a dire financial state.

The man told the court that he couldn’t give investigators information on the three other persons allegedly involved with the case, explaining that both he and his family received death threats.

In passing a verdict, the judge noted that the Supreme Court has repeatedly stated in its rulings that society needs to be protected from drugs and added that the courts should do their part by passing harsh sentences.

The judge also considered the fact that the defendant confessed to his involvement, has no previous convictions and that he was obviously coerced into the crime by people who took advantage of his financial woes.

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