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Police found Devon man locked inside massive cannabis factory

Dope gardener made a run for it along the roof

Rudolf Mikli
Rudolf Mikli(Image: Devon & Cornwall Police)

A man living in a massive cannabis factory tried to escape police by running along the roof of the building. Rudolf Mikli raced off wearing just his shorts, a court heard.

When he realised he could not get down police helped him to safety and arrested him. Inside they discovered Mikli had been sleeping in the industrial unit surrounded by 228 cannabis plants in various states of growth.


He said he had been locked in and his job was to look after the plants. Mikli, an Albanian who arrived in the country illegally in the back of a lorry, has been jailed for 12 months.


Exeter Crown Court was told police executed a warrant at a business park in Braunton on March 14 this year. Before they even got inside Mikli was spotted poking out of a ventilation shaft and scampering off along the roof.

"He was risking his life trying to avoid police," said prosecutor Nikki Combe. "He couldn't get down and police assisted," she added.

The cannabis farm was large "with scope for further development" in the multi-room unit. Plants were found in a number of areas, the equipment was new and the operation sophisticated.

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Police had no idea how long Mikli had been locked inside but found a 10-day-old bus ticket from Exeter. He had limited identity documents and there was no record of him entering the county.

He pleaded guilty to one charge of producing cannabis on the basis that he was a gardener who had not set up the operation and was paying off a debt to others further up the chain. He has no previous convictions.

The prosecutor said the factory was producing drugs with a potential street value of £200,000. The electricity and water main had been bypassed. Mikli had a bed and cooking equipment.


Mikli told probation he had come to the UK in February of last year to earn money for his family back home. Life in his homeland was difficult and his family struggling for money.

He had worked in construction after arriving here but that had dried up so he agreed to pay off his debt another way and was taken to the warehouse.

Graham Wilson, defending, said Mikli had already served 71 days in prison and could be released. He said it cost £1,000 a day to keep people in prison.

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Recorder Malcolm Galloway said Mikli could be subject to deportation on release but he had no influence on that decision.

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