Cabana cannabis bust: Corindi Beach’s Adrian Brian Garnett, 50, backyard operation to “assist him to sleep”
What started as an unrelated police visit turned into a drug bust after the waft of weed led officers to sniff out a giant cannabis plant and more, with the accused pleading guilty in court.
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A towering 1.6m-high poolside pot plant, grown from seed, was found near a backyard cabana in the coastal hamlet of Corindi Beach, landing a sleepy stoner in court.
Coffs Harbour local court heard Adrian Brian Garnett, 50, who grew the giant plant, claimed the cannabis was purely medicinal.
According to court documents, the massive marijuana plant was used to produce cannabis leaf which he then turned into oil and used medicinally to “assist him sleep”.
The illicit substances were found on April 3 last year after police attended an Ocean St, Corindi Beach residence on an unrelated matter.
“While at the address, police smelt a strong scent of cannabis throughout the residence which lingered throughout different areas of the house,” the court documents state.
In facts before the court, Garnett told police he nurtured the plant which was the only responsive seed from one of five laid out in his garden bed.
“The accused told police that he watered the tree however he did not have to water it too much as it grew itself,” the documents show.
Police also found a cardboard box by a fireplace containing 4.86kg of dried cannabis leaf and a large glass jar containing 800gm of self-made cannabis oil.
Documents before the court reveal Garnett has a lengthy criminal history, most recently for possessing/attempting to possess a prescribed restricted substance at Woolgoolga in 2024.
Garnett pleaded guilty in Coffs Harbour Local Court on Tuesday to charges of possessing cannabis (indictable and less than commercial quantity), cultivating a prohibited plant (small quantity) and possessing a prohibited drug.
He remains on bail and is due to return to court for sentencing on March 25.
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Originally published as Cabana cannabis bust: Corindi Beach’s Adrian Brian Garnett, 50, backyard operation to “assist him to sleep”
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