'I was persuaded by quick money': Leeds cannabis grower paid £15,000 to produce four crops of the drug at his house in Beeston

Leeds Crown Court heard 48-year-old Waldemar Koschnik was arrested at the property on Normanton Grove and admitted he had been growing the plants for profit.

Koschnik, told police he had produced three previous crops at his home and had been paid £15,000 by people who persuaded him to become involved in the illegal operation.

Lydia Carroll, prosecuting, said police went to the property on February 22 last year after receiving a report that cannabis was being grown at the house.

Koschnik admitted he had been growing cannabis when he was asked by officers.

Plants were found growing inside tents and in hanging baskets in two rooms of the house.

The defendant admitted to officers it was the fourth crop he had grown at his home.

Ms Carroll said Koschnik was candid about the offending with officers.

He said he had sent £7,000 of his illegally earned cash back to his home in Poland.

Koschnik said he believed it was legal to grow cannabis for personal use in the UK.

He pleaded guilty to producing cannabis and possession of cannabis with intent to supply.

The court heard Koschnik was arrested and placed in custody after he failed to attend a court hearing earlier this year.

He appeared before the court without legal representation.

He said: "I just want to say that I have made some mistakes in my life.

"The marijuana - the fact I got persuaded to grow it in my house - was one of them.

"I had no income or work at the time but somehow I became persuaded by quick money."

Koschnik was given a ten-month prison sentence, suspended for 18 months.

He was also ordered to do 100 hours of unpaid work.

Koschnik will face a confiscation hearing at a later date under the Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA).

Judge Simon Batiste advised Koschnik to get legal representation for the POCA hearing.

The judge told Koschnik he was imposing the suspended sentence due to the length of time he has already spent in prison.

He said: "You have no one else to blame for being in custody because you failed to inform the courts."