A VIETNAMESE man grew more than 700 cannabis plants worth nearly £300,000 at a house in Plymouth, a court heard.

Tri Van Nguyen, aged 41, was paid by dealers to tend the vast crop at a terraced home in Stoke, Plymouth Magistrates' Court was told.

He told police he was given £500 a month to look after the plants under commercial lighting.

Tri admitted producing 706 plants with others unknown worth an estimated £298,000 at 38 Wilton Street last September.

District judge Kevin Gray remanded him in custody to appear at Swansea Crown Court later this month. He is also due to be sentenced there for running another cannabis farm in nearby Neath.

Elaine Keen, for the Crown Prosecution Service, said a property manager called at the rented house on September 22.

She said: "He was confronted by a fire door which had not been there before, black-out curtains and a large amount of cabling. He rang the police."

Mrs Keen added officers found a large number of plants on the first floor under 'industrial' lighting equipment and skunk cannabis in a bedroom.

She said: "As they went through other bedrooms, they found many similar items, plants and commercial units."

Mrs Keen added police found 12 fingerprints belonging to the defendant on items around the three-storey property.

She added that Tri told police in interview he had smuggled himself into Southampton from a lorry coming from France.

Mrs Keen said: "He admitted coming to Plymouth to work and being employed as a gardener. He said he was paid £500 a month and was sending the money back to his family in Vietnam."

She added the cannabis was valued at £298,000.

Mrs Keen said Tri had no previous convictions but had already admitted running a cannabis farm in Neath, South Wales.

Tri, appearing over videolink from Swansea Prison, was told he will be sentenced for both matters on February 20.