PRESTON — Sixteen Vietnamese nationals who made hundreds of thousands of British pounds (billions of đồng) growing illegal drugs in the United Kingdom have been jailed for more than 35 years.

Police in Lancashire, in the North West of England, said the gang ran a ‘sophisticated cannabis farm operation’.

Using false identities and fraudulent documents, they were able to rent dozens of properties and use them to grow cannabis.

Senior members of the gang even posed as a couple with a new born child in a bid to make themselves more attractive to potential landlords.

But once they moved in, they would turn the houses into cannabis farms using a sophisticated hydroponics system.

The gang also employed ‘gardeners’ to visit the properties and tend to the crops.

In March this year, police raided a number of properties leased by the gang members and seized cannabis worth around £1m (VNĐ30 billion). Detectives also found around £250,000 (VNĐ7.5 billion) in cash.

The illegal enterprise was run by Jack Nguyễn and Trang Nguyễn, assisted by Hoài Nguyễn and Thanh Thị Nguyễn, Jack’s girlfriend.

They were all jailed this week at Preston Crown Court for a variety of drug-related offences and money laundering charges.

Detective Sergeant Stu Peall, from the East Exploitation Team, said: “I welcome these sentences which reflect the serious nature of the offending. This was a sophisticated organised criminal group making huge amounts of money from their operation which stretched across the north west of England.

“Many defendants claimed to be trafficked and some claiming to be children, all of these defences were proved to be lies and simply just a tactic used to avoid detection.

“I would like to thank the jury for their careful consideration of this case, and the Crown Prosecution Service.

“Lancashire Constabulary will continue to proactively target the production of cannabis which can have lasting physical and mental health effects on users as well as having a negative effect on our communities and fuelling other crime and we are determined to tackle that.

“We need the public to continue to work with us to help us tackle drug crime by informing us of any suspicious activity.”

Clive Grunshaw, Lancashire’s Police and Crime Commissioner added: "I hope this sends a clear message to those who are getting involved in drug crime that the police have the resources, skills and determination to crack criminal gangs like this and bring their members to justice.

"These people were responsible for running a huge criminal operation across Lancashire and beyond and I want to pay tribute to the hard work and determination of Lancashire investigators that have helped bring these people to justice. No stone is left unturned in stopping criminal gangs and tackling serious and organised crime – a key part of my Police and Crime Plan.” — VNS

Sentences in full:

1)    Jack Nguyễn, 28, of Webster Avenue, Bootle. Pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to produce and supply cannabis and money laundering. Jailed for seven years and four months.

2)    Trang Hương Nguyễn, aka Annie, 28, of Berry Street, Liverpool. Convicted of Conspiracy to produce and supply cannabis. Jailed for three years and nine months.

3)    Hoài Nguyễn, 18, of Wellington Road, Manchester. Pleaded guilty to two counts of money laundering. Jailed for one year and six months.

 4)   Thắng Văn Nguyễn, 34, of Pall Mall, Liverpool. Pleaded guilty to money laundering. Jailed for one year and five months.

5)    Thanh Thị Nguyễn, 21, of Webster Avenue, Bootle. Admitted Conspiracy to produce and supply cannabis and money laundering. Jailed for three years and nine months. 

6)    Thương Hoài Vũ, 24, of Webster Avenue, Bootle. Admitted Conspiracy to produce and supply cannabis. Jailed for two years.

7)    Kim Thiên Trần, 30, of Webster Avenue, Bootle. Admitted Conspiracy to produce and supply cannabis. Jailed for two years and four months.

8)    Toàn Võ, 31, of Westminster Road, Birmingham. Admitted Conspiracy to produce and supply cannabis. Jailed for three years and four months.

9)    Được Trần, 33, of Webster Avenue, Bootle. Convicted of Conspiracy to produce and supply cannabis. Jailed for one year and four months.

10)  Khải Quốc Trần, 36, of Webster Avenue, Bootle. Convicted of Conspiracy to produce and supply cannabis. Jailed for one year and six months.

11)  Huy Hoàng Nguyễn, 19, of Webster Avenue, Bootle. Convicted of Conspiracy to produce and supply cannabis. Jailed for eight months.

12)  Hợi Thị Nguyễn, 40, of Webster Avenue, Bootle. Pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to produce and supply cannabis. Jailed for one year and four months.

13)  Giáp Nguyễn, 34, of April Grove, Liverpool. Pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to produce and supply cannabis. Jailed for one year and four months.

14)  Thắng Nguyễn, 67, of Webster Avenue, Bootle. Pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to produce and supply cannabis. Jailed for one year and four months.

15)  Đông Hồ, 32, of Sharrow Grove, Blackpool. Pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to produce and supply cannabis. Jailed for one year.

16)  Anh Văn Nguyễn, 19, of Lonsdale Road, Blackpool. Pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to produce and supply cannabis. Jailed for ten months.