An Albanian man is in prison facing deportation after he was caught hiding behind a water barrel in the middle of a 120-plant cannabis farm.

The plants could have yielded an estimated £66,000 worth of the Class B drug, Teesside Crown Court heard.

This could have expanded to almost £200,000 worth of weed if the enterprise had produced three crops in a year, said prosecutor Emma Atkinson.

Acting on an anonymous tip-off, police raided the property on Hereford Street, Hartlepool at about 4.30am on January 22.

Officers found a panel had been kicked through and there were four growing rooms, with seedlings providing evidence of a follow-on crop.

Mencur Koka, 23, was caught hiding behind the water barrel in the loft, where 54 plants were growing, with £227 cash with him.

He had a lump on his forehead, he said he had been hit and that someone had been in to steal the crop.

Another man left via the back gate and was later arrested, but was never charged with anything.

Koka admitted producing cannabis and faced a sentence of between 26 weeks and three years for his first criminal conviction.

Julian Gaskin, defending, said: “This is the first time he’s been in custody. It’s not an experience that he wishes to repeat.

“He has been remanded in custody from the onset of these proceedings.”

She said Koka came into the country illegally and had been working in a restaurant in the Shrewsbury area in Shropshire for about four years before playing a “lesser role” in the cannabis cultivation.

“He was given an opportunity and asked if he wanted to earn some money, go to Hartlepool and engage in the production of cannabis,” added Mr Gaskin.

“He was absolutely candid and frank in his interview. He gave full chapter and verse detail of what had taken place.

“He was given some cash to live off. There was a promise to receive further profits ultimately.

“A male tried to steal the crop while he was in situ.”

He added Koka had been a “model prisoner” who buckled down and studied maths and English while in custody and had glowing references.

Mr Gaskin said: “He understands the likelihood is he’ll be deported as soon as possible.”

The judge, Recorder Tim Roberts QC, told Koka: “You’ve been involved in a very serious offence of cultivating cannabis.

“This was obviously production on a commercial scale and you were playing a part in it.”

Koka was jailed for a year.