Four members of an Albanian drug gang will be deported after serving their prison sentence
Greater Manchester Police became aware of an Albanian male who was believed to be controlling others in the large-scale production of cannabis across Greater Manchester, and as a result they undertook a covert proactive investigation between May and November 2023.
Officers discovered 13,000 cannabis plants with an estimated street value of £10,903,200 after three properties were raided in Chadderton, followed by one in Wigan.
Four individuals were jailed at Bolton Crown Court last month
Riza Hodaj aged 39 of Beech Mount, Harpurhey was jailed for seven years,
Iriljan Hodaj aged 32 of Lakeland Crescent, Bury to four years, Henri Shperdhea aged 35 of Denton Lane, Chadderton– Two years three months and Armando Xhemalaj aged 32 of Barracks Road, Wigan to two years three months
All four will be subject to deportation after serving half their sentence.
In addition, the proceeds of crime to the value of over £90,000 is to be forfeited.
Detective Inspector Paul Crompton, of our Serious and Organised Crime Group Syndicate, said: “This was an excellent investigation into an OCG, which resulted in the recovery of over £1million pounds worth of drugs as well as the seizure of a large amount of criminal cash.
“Not only that the organisers of this criminal enterprise were successfully identified and prosecuted, rather than just the ‘gardeners’ who are typically caught within cannabis farms.
“What usually comes from this kind of criminality is people being exploited for cultivating drugs. This operation flipped the script slightly by going after those at the top of criminal enterprise.
“It is hoped that these convictions serve as a deterrent to this type of activity which blights local communities who have organised criminal gangs operating within their communities.”
