A CANNABIS farm gang who used a secret hole in a wall to access their product have all been jailed.

The four men were arrested after police were alerted to a suspected burglary which led to them finding the £212,000 cannabis farm.

Teesside Crown Court heard officers discovered the gang asleep in the next door flat after going through the hole in the wall under the stairs.

Once inside they arrested Arben Ferra, Armond Ficorri, his brother Sami, and Kleandi Moganu, for growing the Class B drug across all three floors of the house on Hartington Road, Stockton, last December.

Paul Rooney, prosecuting, said a total of 253 plants were recovered at various stages of growth with a further five kilogrammes drying, ready for sale.

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Some of the cannabis plants recovered from the house in Stockton

He said: "As soon as they entered (the property) the smell of cannabis was present, they immediately noticed some of the downstairs rooms had been converted to grow cannabis, a search of the house revealed more rooms converted, it was a professional cannabis farm.

"No persons were located within the address, the officers located a hole in the cupboard under the stairs which appeared to let them into the neighbouring property.

"The officers crawled through the hole and found themselves in the flat next door, the hole in the wall was hidden by a wardrobe and only visible when the wardrobe doors were open."

Mr Rooney told the court that all four were Albanian nationals who were living in the country illegally.

All four members of the gang, Ferra, 36, of no fixed address (NFA); Armond Ficorri, 33 or NFA; Sami Ficorri, 29, of Lord Street, Watford; and Moganu, 33, of Hartington Road, Stockton, all pleaded guilty to production of a controlled drug.

In mitigation, John Craggs, who represented all four defendants, urged the judge to pass the shortest prison term possible.

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Hole in the wall

Judge Howard Crowson said: "This was a professional, commercial cannabis farm with cannabis growing on all three floors, you were asleep in the house next door with the hole in the wall and I understand you are Albanian nationals who are illegally in the UK."

They were sentenced to 30 weeks in custody before being be handed over to immigration officials on their release.