Cannabis farm in Uddingston has led to seven jail sentences after men involved were caught out by police

More than 1,000 plants with a wholesale value of £253,000 were seized from a warehouse in Dunvegan Place, just off the M74.

Officers had become suspicious when they noticed a strong smell of cannabis as they drove past the building. The seven men, all from Albania, were found in a bungalow next door to the warehouse.

Bledar Dafa, 43, Sebastian Gjorolumi, 22, and 31-year-old Zamir Cela were each jailed for three years at Hamilton Sheriff Court this week.

Elmi Vrapi, 31, Fjoralb Qosja, 27, and Amarildo Kodra, 26, were each sentenced to 32 months while Brandi Dafa, 21, was handed a two-year stretch. All seven admitted producing cannabis in an operation aggravated by a connection to serious organised crime.

Sheriff John Speir said he accepted the accused had "non-management" roles as "gardeners", but stressed that they had been involved in a "serious criminal enterprise".

He pointed out that the street value of the cannabis would have been much higher than the wholesale figure given by the police.

The plants, along with some harvested material and growing equipment, were inside the two-storey building which had blacked-out windows. The court heard that the seven men panicked and tried to escape when police arrived at the bungalow.

Four were found in the loft while two climbed on to the roof but were soon caught.

Lawyers for the accused said they had come to Scotland for legitimate work.

Diarmid Bruce, defending Quosja, said he had been "misled" about the nature of the job he'd been offered, but agreed to become involved in the cannabis cultivation as he was in a "desperate" financial situation.

Ian Brechany, representing Kodra, claimed his client had moved from London after becoming homeless. The lawyer stated: "He had worked in Uddingston for no more than a day and had received no payment when the police arrived. He had simply been offered a roof over his head."

As well as jailing the men, Sheriff Speir ordered confiscation of the plants and around £5,000 in cash seized by police. The sentences were backdated to February last year as the men have been in custody since then.