POLICE who went to speak to a man about another matter could smell cannabis as soon as he opened his front door.

Blackburn magistrates heard the officers discovered 12 plants under cultivation and another 14 that had been harvested.

Jonathan Daniel Procter 33, of Talbot Street, Colne, pleaded guilty to cultivating cannabis and failing to answer bail. He was made subject to a curfew between 7pm and 7am for eight weeks and ordered to pay £85 costs and £85 victim surcharge.

Tracy Yates, prosecuting, said the plants had been discovered at the address in Barkerhouse Road, Colne, where Procter had been living at the time of the offence. The plants and growing equipment were found in upstairs bedrooms.

David Lawson, defending, said the matter which the police had gone to speak to Procter about had come to nothing. Since then his client had been working in Latvia.

"It was a very unsophisticated set-up," said Mr Lawson. "At the time he was a prolific user of cannabis and was only producing for his own use."