Ipswich forklift driver Nicholas Alexander Stathi in court over serious drug charges

An Ipswich dad was at risk of jail time after police located a number of tents in his home although with a huge drug stash.

Police uncovered an Ipswich fathers major marijuana grow operation after being called to his home in November 2020.

Ipswich Courthouse.

Officers were quick to declare Nicholas Alexander Stathis’s home a crime scene after smelling weed then spotting his “somewhat sophisticated” grow operation.

The Ipswich District court heard the 48-year-old man had 39 30cm plants in five different tents, each with a fan and lighting system.

Stathis told officers the 756g bag of weed they found in the home was for personal use and that he smoked seven to 15g of weed a day.

The forklift driver’s legal counsel said Stathis, who suffers schizophrenia, was going through a rough patch at the time of the offending as he was looking after his newly widowed mother.

Judge Horneman-Wren noted Stathis’s criminal history showed he had run-ins with the law over his drug use.

Stathis pleaded guilty to possessing and producing a drug, possessing a pipe, and possessing a scale and baggies.

Nicholas Alexander Stathis leavs Ipswich Courthouse.

As Judge Horneman-Wren sentenced Stathis to a two year corrective service order his family wept in the courtroom with relief.