A Hereford motor dealer rented out his outbuildings to be used as a drugs factory which could have grown cannabis worth up to more than £52,000 from three crops, a court heard.

Ricky Jones, 42, of Oaklands, Llandinabo, admitted producing cannabis and was given a 12 month jail sentence suspended for a year when he appeared before Worcester Crown Court.

He was also ordered to do 200 hours unpaid work in the community and to pay £580 court costs.

Michael Conry, prosecuting, said police went to Jones’ home at 9.30am on October 10 to carry out a search for “an entirely different matter”.

But they found a “fairly sophisticated” cannabis factory in two sheds behind.

There were a total of 30 plants, between two and four weeks away from flowering, which could have produced 1,746 grams of the drug, worth £17,500.

Mr Conry added it was possible that they could have had three crops, which would triple that amount.

Jonathan Barker, defending, said Jones was approached at a pub in Hereford and it was suggested he could let out one of his outbuildings to grow cannabis.

He agreed and next day people from the “travelling community” visited him and pressured him to continue with the idea.

A man named Billy set up the equipment and gave him written instructions about what to do with the plants.

In return, Jones was to receive a rent and a contribution to his electric bill, as well as small amounts of cannabis for his own use.

Mr Barker said Jones had left school at 14 and, since 2004, had been buying and selling cars but he had a £16,000 overdraft and “stupidly” agreed to Billy’s suggestion.

Jones was suffering from depression, was due to have nose surgery and he was worried about the embarrassment of the offence to his four children.

Judge Michael Cullum said Jones had been set to earn £100 a week from renting out his buildings for the cannabis growing.

“You were only a partner in the enterprise – not the person who designed the set-up,” added the judge.

Judge Cullum also ordered the forfeiture of an amount of money found at Jones’ premises, which he said was “believed to be” 840 US dollars and £80.