HORROR OF CHINESE DRUG SLAVE

Evil gang bosses forced a Chinese earthquake survivor into becoming a
cannabis factory slave in the heart of Derry, a shocked court heard
yesterday.

Quan Li was smuggled out of China in a container after his house in
Sichuan province was destroyed in a tremor. He was recruited by people
he didn't know at a casino in Belfast to look after 320 cannabis
plants in a house off Bishop Street.

Judge Desmond Marrinan heard that he was promised ?1,000 but was never
paid, and was ordered never to leave the 'cannabis factory' in Sunbeam
Terrace during his three months there. His food was delivered by
"persons unknown" and he got instructions by mobile phone.

Jailing Quan Li for two years, Judge Marrinan said he'd been misused
by more sinister people.

A prosecuting barrister said the house had been converted into a
"sophisticated cannabis farm".

"The five bedrooms had been converted into growing rooms complete with
foil insulated walls, numerous heat lamps and circulating fans. There
was also a makeshift watering facility with evidence of fertilisers
and plant growth accelerants. An examination of the scene also
revealed that the electricity supply within the house had been
extensively altered to facilitate in the cultivation of cannabis,
bypassing the electricity meter."

Arrested

The court heard that Quan Li was arrested on June 5th last as part of
a police investigation into the growing of cannabis in a number of
locations across Northern Ireland. He was found removing the leaves
from a cannabis plant.

Defence counsel Billy McCrory Q.C. said after Quan Li arrived in the
UK from China in a container with other illegal immigrants, he was
recruited to work as a so-called gardener.

"He had no papers, no identity papers, no documentation and he found
it difficult to get work," he said.

Judge Marrinan also made a recommendation that Qang Li be deported, as
he had no legitimate status in the U.K. and had not applied for asylum.