GAZETTE & HERALD: Builder Jason Crook pledged to stop smoking cannabis after police raided his home and discovered 14 cannabis plants in his bedroom, a court heard.

Defending, Rodger Jones said that Crook, of No Notion Cottage, Corsham, started smoking the drug when he was 16, but it was a phase of his life he now wished to put behind him.

He said his client was not a dealer, but grew the plants for his own personal use specifically, to avoid having to mix with criminals.

The 29-year-old pleaded guilty to cultivating cannabis plants and two charges of possession of cannabis at Chippenham Magistrates Court last Thursday.

Prosecuting Emmalyne Downing said the manager of the Thistle Hotel, in Cardiff, Wales, telephoned police on December 8 on suspicion a patron was using an illegal drug.

Officers entered the room and discovered a small quantity of skunk in a plastic bag, in Crook's jacket pocket, which was hung over a chair.

The court heard how days later police searched Crook's home and found a small amount of the drug in the front room and 14 cannabis plants, in bedding trays, and under UV light bulbs, placed in his bedroom.

Ms Downing said the plants were 30cms tall and weighed 380grammes, with 190grammes of harvestable crop. She said one gram of herbal cannabis is worth £3.10, which gave the crop an approximate value of £580.

Crook, who is single, denied that he intended to sell the drug.

Mr Jones said his client, who is a self-employed builder, was very open about his cannabis smoking habit, but had not smoked the drug at all since the police discovered his plants in December.

"He is determined to turn his life around and deal with matters in a more responsible, mature and adult way," Mr Jones said.

The defence disputed the amount of harvestable cannabis available from the plants.

The magistrates fined Crooks £500 and ordered him to pay the prosecutions costs of £138.