David Wyler jailed five years over 500-plant “strongest” UK cannabis factory
David Wyler, 55, was jailed for five years at Derby Crown Court on 17 November 2006 after police found 500 cannabis plants at a rented Ilkeston house he had turned into a hydroponic factory. Forensic tests put THC at 29%; officers said records showed about £600,000 earned over seven years.
David Wyler, 55, of Poplar Avenue, Nottingham, received five years in prison at
Derby Crown Court after admitting producing and possessing cannabis and
possessing amphetamines.[1]Police discovered the factory only when a
neighbour reported a possible burglary at the rented Ilkeston property.[1]
Factory and earnings
The house was entirely given over to cannabis production.[1][2]Officers
seized 500 plants; forensic tests measured THC at 29%, which Derbyshire Police
described as the strongest cannabis then found in the UK, against a typical 12%
reading.[1][2]Detectives said Wyler’s records showed about £600,000 earned
over seven years; police also seized £30,000 cash and three cars.[1][2]
Detective Sergeant Stuart Kershaw said the setup was sophisticated commercial
production and that the sentence should deter others.[1]The court listed a
later Proceeds of Crime Act hearing to pursue criminal assets.[1]Wyler had
convinced his wife he was a respectable businessman while running the factory.[2]
Case data
Every number and detail the sources state, with the sources that state it.
An October 2006 hearing report put Wyler’s estimated earnings at £500,000; sentencing coverage cited £600,000 from records—both figures come from police or prosecution statements, not a confiscation order at sentencing.
The opened reports do not give the date of the neighbour’s burglary tip-off that led police to the house.
Wyler also admitted possessing amphetamines; the reports do not quantify that seizure.
Callum Roper, 22, of Holton Road, Barry, was jailed for 30 months at Cardiff Crown Court after admitting offences involving the supply of cannabis and magic mushrooms. He pleaded guilty to being concerned in the supply of both drugs between 3 December 2025 and 14 September 2026 and had been remanded in custody awaiting sentence.
Bolton Crown Court sentenced seven members of three linked drug gangs that trafficked cocaine and cannabis between Manchester, Stoke-on-Trent and North Wales. Five men received prison sentences of up to eleven and a half years, while two couriers received community orders and two leaders await later sentencing.
Daniel Thompson, 36, was found with 8,223.6 grams of cannabis resin, valued at up to £35,950, when officers searched a house on Moss Side Lane in Rixton in July 2023. Chester Crown Court gave him a nine-month prison sentence suspended for 12 months and 100 hours of unpaid work after he admitted possessing the resin with intent to supply and possessing cocaine.
Sentenced 1Cannabis 8.2236 kgPrison 9 months suspended for 12 months
Bradford Crown Court jailed Alfie Leahy, 21, for five years and Connor Broadbent, 26, for three years and four months over drugs found when police raided two homes in the Holmewood area at dawn on 17 July 2026. Cannabis was seized at a Grayswood Crescent address and cocaine, cash and jewellery at Dawson Street; police put the total street value of the drugs at more than £22,000.
Charged 2Prison 5 years (Leahy); 3 years and 4 months (Broadbent)
