A FAMILY from Whitland have appeared at crown court today to face charges relating to a ‘cannabis factory’ which is said to have produced an estimated £3.5m of the drug.
Four members of the McCann family, who relocated to Cwmbach, near Whitland, Carmarthenshire, from Portsmouth in 2015, all deny the charges.
Edward Robert McCann, 61, company director of Orbis Mobile Technologies Ltd based in Hampshire is charged with four counts of conspiracy to supply a class B drug on various dates between 2013, two years before the family moved to the farm, and from 2015 to 2020, when at the farm.
McCann, is also said to have had a large amount of cash he could not account for, namely £185,000 in his bank account when the Inland Revenue say his income was only £7189.
Linda McCann,59, of Cwmbach, Whitland, Carmarthenshire, Samantha McCann,25, of Bristol; Justin James David Liles, aged 31, of St Clears, Carmarthenshire; and Jack Whittock, aged 28, of Llanteg, Pembrokeshire all deny conspiracy to produce and supply cannabis between 2015 and 2020 and to possessing criminal property.
Daniel Edward McCann,36, of Waterlooville, Hampshire, also denies the charge.
Daniel McCann, along with his father Edward, have also denied a further charge of conspiracy involving the production and supply of cannabis, which relates to offences in Hampshire between 2013 and 2015.
The drug bust is said to be one of the largest ever raids by Dyfed-Powys Police.
Whilst executing the warrant, officers recovered almost £2 million worth of cannabis and cannabis-products, including oils and edibles.
The barn on the farm is said to have been ventilated with fans, lighting and paraphernalia relating to the harvesting of cannabis was found.
It is believed that tinned cans were used to conceal and transport the products, and machinery relating to the sealing of tins was also found at the property.
On the first day of the trial, the jury at Swansea Crown Court heard how clothes horses were used to dry the cannabis.
A large amount of cash was also seized during the raid, which was bundled in £1,000 cash.
It is expected that the trial will last around four weeks.
