Nine-month jail term after £1.24million cannabis was found hidden inside hay bales

Greene, aged 34, was sentenced to serve nine months in custody and nine months on licence, having pleaded guilty to possession of a Class B controlled drug with intent to supply.

The investigation followed from an incident in October 2020, in which an insecure load of hay bales fell from a horsebox being driven on the M1, near the Blacks Road Junction.

Detective Inspector Shaw said: “The horsebox, being driven on the M1 in Belfast, shed its load on the morning of 3 October 2020.

“It’s believed that the driver – Nathan Greene – temporarily stopped to secure some bales before promptly leaving the scene.

“Cannabis, with an estimated street value of approximately £1.24 million, was found hidden inside the bales that had fallen.

“As part of the investigation, detectives from our Organised Crime Unit searched a number of properties in County Down and subsequently arrested the defendant.”

Detective Inspector Shaw continued: “Through Operation Dealbreaker, and with the support of partner organisations, we are committed to tackling the supply, use and harm caused by illegal drugs.

“Drug dealers don’t care about individuals and communities, or the lives and relationships that get destroyed along the way.

“Their interest is purely with lining their own pockets.

“I hope that today’s sentencing sends out a clear message to those who think they can profit at the expense of others,” Detective Inspector Shaw concluded.