A HOMELESS man who agreed to help look after a massive cannabis farm in Liverpool has been jailed for two years.

Former Runcorn man Raymond Thompson, aged 46, was told by Judge David Aubrey yesterday that it had been "an extremely sophisticated operation involving 193 plants”.

He said that although Thompson was not at the helm of the operation he had played a significant role looking after the crop and providing chemicals to aid their growth.

Liverpool Crown Court heard that police raided a rented house in Northdale Road, Wavertree, on October 2 last year.

The plants had a potential yield of almost eight kilos with a street value of £154,000.

Thompson was found hiding half-dressed in the loft behind a stud wall. Michael Stephenson, prosecuting, said that he told how while living rough and sleeping in his car he had been approached by two Asian men to move into the house and help with the cannabis farm.

He had been there for three months and was paid between £200 and £300 a week.

But he said he had to purchase chemicals out of that money for the crop and had only accumulated £700 by the time he was arrested.

Thompson, who used to live with his mum in Runcorn until a fall-out, pleaded guilty to producing cannabis and abstracting electricity.

The meter had been bridged and at least £4,000 worth of power illegally used.

Wendy Shurrock, defending, said that Thompson, who has no previous convictions, had been naive and was desperate for a roof over his head which was why he became involved.