Glasgow cannabis factory men were human trafficking victims

Two Albanian men caught at a cannabis factory in Glasgow have been freed from prison after it emerged they were the victims of human trafficking.

Orges Rizak and Agustin Grembi were arrested at a converted industrial building in Possilpark in November 2020.

Cannabis plants worth up to £9.5m were seized during the raid.

The two men later pled guilty to drug charges and faced long prison sentences.

However, the Home Office has since established the two men were trafficked to Scotland to work at the factory.

The High Court in Glasgow heard both Mr Rizaj and Mr Grembi had been too scared to explain what had happened because of the potential consequences for themselves and their families.

'Exceptional circumstances'

Their guilty pleas were withdrawn and new pleas of not guilty were accepted by the Crown.

Judge Lord Mulholland said: "This is an exceptional step and I am satisfied there are exceptional circumstances."

A hearing last year had been told how police raided the property in Strathmore Road, Possilpark, after a tip-off.

A man known as "Danny" paid a £5,000 deposit to rent the building in February 2020.

This individual was neither Mr Rizaj or Mr Grembi.

Mr Rizaj told police he had been in Scotland for two months and both he and Mr Grembi were quizzed about alleged human trafficking.

Prosecutor Euan Cameron told the court: "Rizaj said he had come to the UK for a better life and paid 18,000 euros to those who arranged transport.

"That sum was still outstanding and he was working to pay it off."

Mr Rizaj's lawyer Billy Lavelle said: "He was not being paid anything. He was paying off the transportation (to the UK)."