Two people have been jailed for their role in the maintenance of a Sunshine West crop house where 134 marijuana plants were found growing.
Tien Nguyen and Hien Nguyen pleaded guilty to cultivating cannabis not less than a commercial quantity.
A sentencing hearing on February 23 heard police raided the Collenso Street property on August 27 last year and found a sophisticated hydroponic set-up in six rooms.
There they uncovered 134 plants, weighing more than 50kg, and more than 10kg of dried cannabis was also found.
The pair was seen running towards the rear of the property before being arrested.
Tien Nguyen, 32, said he had been hired to cut, dry and bag cannabis for $2000 a month but claimed he had no idea what cannabis or marijuana plants were.
He said he had moved into the property a month prior to his arrest.
‘Cropsitter’
The court heard Hien Nguyen, 22, was employed as a “cropsitter” and was not involved in the “planning or entrepreneurial aspects of the crop”.
Hien said she had only been at the property for four or five days prior to her arrest, had fed, cut and dried plants, and had been promised $1500 to mind the house for 10 days.
“The role of a cropsitter is an essential part of the growing of such a crop as this,” Judge Richard Smith said.
“You played an integral role, even for a relatively short time, in the enterprise.
“You told police that you only became aware that the property was a crop house once you arrived there.”
Judge Smith said both were purely motivated by greed.
“You did what you did because you were offered money to do it,” he said.
Tien and Hien were jailed for 18 months and 15 months respectively.
