A MAN who went to a shed in a nightclub yard to collect his belongings came away instead with a bag of cannabis.

Blackburn magistrates heard Darren Quinn had found the drug in The Shack, a wooden building used as a bar in summer, at the rear of Voodoo Lounge, Accrington.

But prosecutor Alex Mann said, “not surprisingly”, no-one had claimed ownership of the cannabis.

Quinn, 39, of Union Street, Oswaldtwistle, pleaded guilty to burglary and theft of plant matter. He was made subject to a community order for 12 months with a 20-day rehabilitation activity requirement and ordered to pay £400 compensation for damage caused to The Shack and a fence. The magistrates ordered the forfeiture of the cannabis.

Mrs Mann said the manager of the club discovered Quinn in the yard and challenged him.

“He wasn’t making a lot of sense but said he had been told to collect his property from The Shack which is used to store rubbish at the moment,” said Mrs Mann. When he was arrested the cannabis was found.

Quinn said he found it in The Shack among the rubbish and took it because he thought he would be able to sell it.

“Not surprisingly no-one has come forward to say the cannabis was theirs but clearly it was not the defendant’s.”

Jonathan Taylor, defending, described the incident as “strange.”

“There was no initial complaint of anything being removed and perhaps you can understand why.” said Mr Taylor. “The only thing of any value in the shed was the cannabis.”