A dealer whose kitchen drugs factory churned out £4million of cannabis-laced boiled sweets has been jailed for nine years.
Ryan Dobson’s Space Monkey chews could have caused “significant harm” to any child who ate them because they look identical to popular treats, police said.
A large amount of cannabis, high-strength skunk and a sophisticated drugs production operation was discovered in the kitchen and garage, Snaresbrook Crown Court heard on Thursday.
Twelve cube-sized rubber sweet moulds, some covered in cannabis oil, enabled Dobson to rapidly produce 900 cannabis sweets at a time.
The court heard based on the weight and value of the cannabis sweets, together with more than 20,100 empty tins in 28 large boxes, the operation had a total street value of £3,729,600.
Dobson claimed he only sold cannabis to cancer sufferers. However, a judge rejected this and concluded that he played a “leading role” in the commercial supply of cannabis in various forms.
During the search of his house, officers also found a small quantity of cocaine, two stun guns - one disguised as a torch - and two encrypted ‘EnchroChat’ mobile phones that cost £1,500 for a six-month contract.
Even though Dobson was found in possession of two devices, the investigation is not part of Operation Venetic which made headlines in June when law enforcement agencies penetrated the global network criminals used believing it to be uncrackable.
Dobson pleaded guilty to possessing, supplying, producing and importing cannabis. He also admitted possessing a stun gun and cocaine.
In October, 17 female pupils were hospitalised after eating cannabis-laced sweets at La Sainte Union Catholic School in Highgate, north London.
They were in a bright green pouch marked “super potent formula” Nerd Rope Bites, decorated to look like the packaging for the popular children’s chews.
Detective Inspector Niall McSheffrey, of the Metropolitan Police’s Specialist Crime Command, said: “Dobson had established a lucrative drugs factory, which could have caused significant harm to children.
“He converted boiled sweets into cannabis-laced sweets and an adult or young person would not have known the difference.
“Dobson claimed to be selling the cannabis for medicinal purposes to help ease the pain of cancer patients. However, he has no medical training and the cannabis seized was illegal. He was purely selling the cannabis products for financial gain.
“This conviction and the seizure of these illegal products represents the Met’s commitment to tackle all safeguarding issues and bring those involved in the manufacture and supply of drugs to justice.”
