Ballimore cannabis bust: Three plead guilty in Dubbo court

Three people have confessed how they helped cultivate thousands of cannabis plants at a rural NSW property, with one blaming Covid for his crime.

Three people caught up in a $6.5 million drug bust which saw 2440 cannabis plants and 427 kilograms of cannabis leaf seized by police on a rural NSW property have pleaded guilty to cultivating a large commercial quantity of prohibited plant.

Nam Son Dinh, 27, of South Winsdor, along with Sothat Chhan, 35, of Miller, and Thi Lan Le, 60, of Ballimore appeared by audiovisual link from various prisons to enter their pleas in Dubbo Local Court.

Two people arrive at Dubbo Police Station after they were arrested at a Ballimore property. Picture: NSW Police

According to court documents, a 396 hectare property on Goan Creek Road at Ballimore, 40 kilometres east of Dubbo, was purchased by two men in August 2019.

Following the purchase a large commercial greenhouse was installed where various people including Dinh, Chhan and Le cultivated cannabis.

Police started looking into was happening at the property in December 2019 and Strike Force Emerstan was formed to investigate the cultivation and supply of cannabis across the central west.

Cannabis plants police found at the Ballimore property. Picture: NSW Police

During the investigation, surveillance of the property was conducted and police watched as people walked around inside the greenhouse, carrying equipment used to maintain the cannabis crop.

The sounds of power drills and mulching machiens were heard by police, who could also see cannabis plants and people hammering sticks into the ground inside the greenhouse.

Details contained in court documents also show Dinh was one member of the group police watched in Sydney’s west, when he went to a Bunnings store in Bonnyrigg, to purchase various items including soil improvers, duct tape, saws and propagation trays.

More of the cannabis police located. Picture: NSW Police

The Ballimore property was raised by police on April 27, 2020, and police discovered various items including vacuum seal machines, phones and cash along with 2440 cannabis plants and 427kg of cannabis worth an estimated $6.5 million in total.

Dinh, Chhan and Le all ran from police who entered the greenhouse, but the trio were later arrested and charged along with five other people.

The volume of cannabis found was greater than a legally defined commercial quantity. Picture: NSW Police

According to court documents, Dinh told police he had only very recently got involved in the cannabis cultivation operation because his family in Vietnam could not support him after he lost his job because of Covid-19.

“They told me to come to grow the plants and weed the flower,” Dinh said.

The cannabis plants were “already big” when Dinh started working at the property and he said would was guaranteed $50,000 after harvesting the flowers.

“They said if the plant has flowered, I have to collect them all,” Dinh said.

In the case of Le, details contained in court documents revealed there was no evidence she was at the Ballimore property on any other dates except for April 26 and 27.

She has remained in custody, bail refused for more than a year despite there being no relevant DNA match established between her and the greenhouse.

The cases of Dinh, Chhan and Le return to court in August.

Various other people who were charged in relation to the Ballimore raid remain remanded in custody and they are yet to enter pleas.