Sheffield drug farmer claimed he would 'smoke £21,000 worth of cannabis'

Officers discovered 25 plants at Kurdu Faquia's Mount Street home when they called on January 25, last year, said prosecutor Laura Marshall.

If the yield was sold in £10 street deals it would have fetched between £7,000 to £21,000, she said, but he claimed it was for personal use.

Clarkson Baptiste, mitigating, said Faquia, who has no previous convictions, arrived from Iraq 20 years ago, after facing "hardships and extraordinary situations in his life."

"He is at low risk of re-offending," Mr Baptiste said.

Faquia, 51, pleaded guilty to production of the Class B drug, at South Yorkshire Magistrates Court.

Recorder Matthew Happold sentenced him to six months, suspended for 12 months, and ordered 150 hours of unpaid work and five rehabilitation days.

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