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A heavy cannabis user who tried to claim he knew nothing about 1.2kg of the drug stored in his loft was told by a judge that he was “fortunate” it happened to be there, given his addiction.

Judge Christopher Batty made the sarcastic comment after Kamyer Omari denied any knowledge of the drugs at his upstairs flat on Harewood Road, Wakefield. There were messages also found on Omari’s phone suggesting that the cannabis “would be ready for harvest tomorrow”, prosecutor Robert Galley told Leeds Crown Court.

After Judge Batty said he would not jail him, the 30-year-old changed his plea to guilty for a charge of possession with an intent to supply Class B drugs.

The court heard that a police officer detected the strong smell of cannabis while patrolling the area on January 20 last year. He knocked on the door and there was a delayed response before Omari answered.

Omari's upstairs flat was found to contain more than 1kg of cannabis. (pic by Google Maps / National World)

It was thought that Omari had tried to hide drugs before coming to the door. Around 25 grammes of cannabis was found hidden under clothing in a cupboard. The 1.2kg of harvested cannabis was found in two black bags.

Following his arrest, he denied any knowledge of the large quantity of drugs in the loft.

Given the evidence, Judge Batty gave defence counsel Mohamed Rafiq a short time to speak with Omari after indicating his intention not to jail him. He then altered his plea. Omari had been on a suspended sentence that expired just days before he was arrested.

Judge Batty gave him a six-month jail sentence, suspended for 12 months and told him to pay £400 prosecution costs.

Cannabis user sarcastically told he was 'fortunate' that 1kg of the drug happened to be in his Wakefield loft