POLICE who attended a Blackburn house after a report of four masked men kicking at the front door ended up arresting a man inside.

Blackburn magistrates heard Dylan Gibson was evasive and claimed he didn’t have a key to open his own front door.

And when officers forced the door they immediately smelled cannabis and found a production unit in a locked bedroom.

Gibson, 34, of Mitton Close, pleaded guilty to producing cannabis.

He was remanded on bail for a pre-sentence report. Philippa White, prosecuting, said a neighbour on Mitton Close alerted police after seeing the masked men.

The police found 11 plants and cultivation equipment.

Gareth Price, defending, said his client had been put under pressure to grow the cannabis.

“He would have passed it on to clear the debt and there would have been no other financial gain for him.”