Three Albanians have been jailed after the discovery of one of the largest cannabis factories ever found in Hampshire, Great Britain.
Officers were carrying out inquiries in relation to another case which led them to enter the warehouse in Millbank Street, Southampton, on Friday, October 21.
Inside, they discovered 2,012 cannabis plants in various stages of maturity and hundreds of other empty pots that had once held narcotic plants.
According to drug experts, the factory could have an annual turnover of up to 1.6 million pounds.
A secondary building was designed inside the warehouse, which had several large production rooms with irrigation, fans, ventilation and heating lamps.
Also, there were makeshift offices and a conference room, a kitchen, enough beds to sleep 12 people and a bathroom. It even had gym equipment.
A security camera system was also installed to monitor the perimeter of the warehouse.
The power supply had been illegally wired to bypass the meter, with three large cables running underground outside the warehouse.
At the scene, officers arrested Rezart Selami, 29 years old, Alfred Mamoci, 36 years old, and Selami Lugja, 31 years old, all of no fixed address. The factory was dismantled within a day and the plants were seized and destroyed, along with mobile phones.
Selami, Mamoci and Lugja pleaded guilty to producing a class B drug - cannabis and appeared at Southampton Crown Court yesterday to be sentenced. They were each jailed for three years.