Man claims he was growing weed to pay for his mother's funeral

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A 24-year-old man in the U.K. who was caught with 19 plants in his home recently told the court he was growing weed to help pay for his mother’s funeral.

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According to LancsLive, the roofer had lost out on a lot of work because of weather conditions in the U.K. and his mother had died.

He told the court his cannabis use escalated after his mother died and so he began growing the plant to both feed his habit and cover the funeral costs.

Possessing, producing or supplying a Class B drug like cannabis is illegal throughout the U.K. Although the maximum punishment is not often doled out, growing weed could potentially result in a 14-year prison sentence, an unlimited fine or both, according to the U.K. government.

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On Dec. 2, 2021, the man admitted to police carrying out a raid of the home that he had a small amount of illegal weed in his bedroom, namely about 21 grams. A search of the property, though, revealed a sophisticated grow-op — complete with lighting, insulation and bypassed electricity — in the second bedroom, The World News reports.

In all, police discovered 19 marijuana plants, digital scales, more than $1,300, a blank firing pistol and ammunition.

Per LancsLive, his defence lawyer told the court that the arrest and charges taught him an important lesson. He is in a steady relationship, has a new highway maintenance job and no longer uses cannabis.

Although the sentencing recorder noted that the sophisticated grow did not appear to be for personal use alone, the man’s honesty about his addiction and circumstances was appreciated.

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The man has been sentenced to a 12-month community order with 150 hours of unpaid work and 10 rehabilitation days, reports LancsLive. As for the cash, plants and paraphernalia seized during the raid, all have been forfeited and destroyed.

It’s not the first time someone in the U.K. has found himself or herself charged after growing cannabis to pay down debts.

In February of 2021, a man arrested for his part in an illicit cannabis operation told police he did so to help repay a debt he owed after being smuggled into the country from Albania. He had been working in construction, but wasn’t making enough cash to repay what he owed.

And in January 2022, a 25-year-old man reported to police that he had agreed to important a kilogram of weed to pay down his thousands of dollars of debt.

Although “personal use” arguments have proved hit and miss with U.K. courts, fessing up to being addicted has been helpful in some cases at sentencing.

A Lithuanian-born mechanic caught with weed he claimed was meant to feed his addiction avoided potentially serious time when a judge ordered that he repay court costs, be subject to an electronically monitored curfew, complete unpaid work and undertake rehabilitation.

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