Men jailed over £1m cannabis factory

Mark Gjonaj, left, and Kristian Zefi, right, have been jailed for one year and four months.

Two men arrested when police raided a £1m cannabis farm have been jailed.

Officers found Mark Gjonaj, 28, and Kristian Zefi, 31, inside a commercial unit on Sussex Street, Sheffield, in March tending to more than 1,100 plants.

South Yorkshire Police said the grow posed a "serious fire hazard" to neighbouring buildings as its electricity supply had been hooked up to an underground mains cable.

Gjonaj, of no fixed abode, and Zefi, of Upminster Road, in Havering, London, were both jailed for 16 months each after they pleaded guilty to attempting to produce cannabis.

Officers found two rooms full of cannabis plants and several others which seemed to have been converted for further production.

The factory was using bypassed electricity to grow about 1,100 cannabis plants.

PC Kevin Parker said: "This was an elaborate and sophisticated set-up being used to grow a significant amount of cannabis, and we know from past cases that productions like these are often set up to fund the activities of organised crime groups.

"The bypassing of electricity within the unit was also incredibly dangerous and we have since worked to eliminate that risk and protect members of the public from harm."

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