by Julia Roberts

A man who set up a "sophisticated and significant" cannabis factory in a barn at his isolated farmhouse in Ashford has been jailed for four years.

The public gallery at Maidstone Crown Court erupted in fury when 53-year-old Samuel Dundas was sentenced. His partner hurled offensive abuse at both the judge and a court usher.

Dundas, who still lives at Bridge Farmhouse in Church Road, Warehorne, had denied producing cannabis and abstracting electricity but was convicted of both charges by a jury in December.

Jailing him, Judge Michael Carroll said he was satisfied that Dundas had been "in charge" of running the drugs factory.

"I take the view this was a plan from the beginning," he added. "You rented the farm for this purpose and I do not accept for one moment that anyone could have persuaded you to allow cultivation to take place after you became the tenant....You were in charge from the start."

Judge Carroll also said he "totally" rejected Dundas's claim that, having discovered the drugs in his barn, he intended to destroy them.

Also in the dock were Gavin Lutchman, 33, of Woodford Place, Wembley, and Thomas Fenton, 47, of Hastings House, White City Estate, London.

Lutchman had denied producing cannabis but was convicted by the same jury and jailed for a year. The judge described him as a "willing and enthusiastic" participant.

The trial heard police found footage on Lutchman's mobile phone showing him standing among several cannabis plants. It was filmed, said prosecutor Simon Taylor, for "posterity".

Fenton, a roadsweeper, admitted the same charge before the trial. He was jailed for 10 months. Both men were described as acting as gardeners for the drugs factory.

More than 280 plants of potent skunk cannabis were found by police in June 2010, the majority hidden behind bales of hay.

Mr Taylor said two-thirds of the barn had been sectioned off to grow the drug. "When a bale or two was removed, a tunnel became apparent leading to a door into the factory," he explained.

"It was fitted with lighting, ventilation and plants which were one to eight weeks old. It had the potential to produce multi kilos of strong skunk cannabis."

The factory was also fitted with foil-lined walls and ceiling, power transformers, an air-conditioning unit and incubators for baby plants. Power was fed to the barn by cables connected to the farmhouse’s electricity supply.

Another 13 plants were found growing in a courtyard garden where Dundas, who has nine children under the age of 16, kept three Rottweilers and a Staffordshire bull terrier.

The picturesque, five-bedroomed, detached property was being rented at a cost of £1,300 a month by Dundas, who paid more than £10,000 in rent and deposit up front, despite living on what was described as a modest annual income of £12-16,000 a year.