A CANNABIS user pressured into growing the drug in premises he rented, narrowly escaped an immediate prison sentence.

But 25-year-old David Richard Appleton left Durham Crown Court with a warning that any further offending over the coming 24 months would lead to the activation of a two-year suspended prison sentence.

Appleton was before the court on charges of producing a class B drug and abstracting electricity.

He previously admitted both charges, but tried to suggest he ran a two-room cannabis production unit purely to meet his own consumption of the drug.

On Judge Simon Hickey’s suggestion, defence barrister Stuart Graham had further consultation with the defendant, who admitted growing it on someone else’s behalf, in order to take what he needed from each crop for his own use.

Martin Towers, prosecuting, said when police visited the premises, in Park Road, Witton Park, near Bishop Auckland, on June 19 last year, they found 51 plants in flower, with a potential yield of 2.93kg of skunk cannabis, which could net a potential £29,000 in street sale terms.

They also recovered a press, to compress the cultivated cannabis into blocks, ventilators, heat lamps and other paraphernalia for use in the growth of the drug, equipment worth an estimated £2,000, Mr Towers told the court.

Although no-one was present when police raided the property, Appleton went of his own volition to Bishop Auckland Police Station, when he initially made the claim the drugs being grown were purely for personal consumption.

The court heard that Appleton, of Abbey Road, Bishop Auckland, has only one previous drug-related matter on his record, a caution for cocaine possession.

Mr Graham told the court that it was only the judge’s previous intervention which made the defendant, “see good sense and come clean”, as to his involvement.

“Of course, it is accepted this now takes it over the threshold for a custodial sentence.

“But, given that he has a very limited offending history, and is in full-time work, as well as taking account his level of involvement, I would suggest it’s a sentence that could be suspended.

“Although it’s a high level of plants, it’s not in its hundreds, and it might be said he’s been somewhat naïve, in this case.

“He’s been exploited by people whose names he won’t tell me, but who are known people in the drug world, motivated, on his part by some reward.”

Imposing a two-year prison sentence, suspended for two years, Judge Hickey also ordered Appleton to perform 200-hours’ unpaid work and undergo a 15-day rehabilitation programme with the Probation Service.

The judge told him: “Instead of growing drugs, you can pay back to the community through unpaid work.

“Fail to comply with those requirements, you’ll be brought back before the court and unless it’s unjust to do so, I will activate this sentence.”