POLICE found more than 2kg of cannabis, worth over £21,000, when they raided a man's home in Burnmoor Road, Breightmet, Bolton Crown Court heard.

Verity Quaite, prosecuting, told how, in 30-year-old Christopher Sharples' bedroom, officers recovered Quality Street tubs stuffed with the drug and two black plastic buckets also containing cannabis, one of which had in it plant material valued at £12,560.

"It was the defendant's belief that the material had no value. He believed it was only stalk and leaf material," said Miss Quaite.

Scales, a debtors list and cash was was also found in the raid on March 11, 2019,but Sharples claimed some of the money was the remains of a £8,000 payout he had received following an injury in a car crash.

The court heard he refused to give police the PIN number to his iPhone.

Joshua Bowker, defending, stressed that, although Sharples, who works as a scaffolder, has a criminal record he has largely stayed out of trouble since 2016.

Sharples pleaded guilty to possessing cannabis with intent to supply and Judge Graeme Smith sentenced him to 10 months in prison, suspended for 18 months. He was also made subject to a 7pm to 4am curfew for two months and was ordered to undertake a thinking skills programme and 20 days of rehabilitation activities.