LARGE scale cannabis farmers who used their Bolton estate agency as a cover for their criminal activities have been jailed for a total of more than 18 years.

Brothers Hanif and Bilal Valli, together with former school friend Zameer Qayume set up a network of cannabis farms in residential properties throughout the area, with Vietnamese “gardeners” put into the homes to look after the crops.

The trio used Global Estates in St Helens Road — set up by Hanif Valli and Qayume — to organise the operation, even creating fake tenancies for properties they were using.

But police became suspicious when they found that several cannabis farms they were raiding were all handled by Global Estates.

Officers found 1,750 plants, worth an estimated £700,000, in eight properties with cannabis equipment in a ninth between October 31, 2011, and September 14, 2012.

All the properties were linked to the agency — or to the defendants — and even a flat above Global Estates’ offices was being used to grow the drug.

The trio admitted conspiracy to produce cannabis just three weeks before they were due to stand trial.

But they claimed that they had done so because there had been assaults and threats made by a group of unnamed “Chinese” men.

But Judge Timothy Clayson dismissed the men’s accounts as “ridiculous” and said the excuses amounted to “wholesale lying”.

He said: “The evidence I have heard as to the assaults and threats by three Chinese men is wholly fabricated and has been designed with a view to misleading the court and in order to seek a much lower sentence."

Hanif Valli, aged 34 and his brother Bilal Valli, aged 33, both of Newbrook Road, Over Hulton, were each jailed for seven years and Qayume, aged 33, of Longfield Road, Bolton, was sentenced to four years and two months.

The court heard that at each of the cannabis farms, 300 to 400 plants were being grown.

Non-existent tenants were created to lease the premises — mostly people purporting to be from overseas — and fake documents were created to support their tenancy agreements.

On one occasion a sample passport document was downloaded from the internet for a property in Cecilia Street — but details were not changed. The document stated that supposed tenant was a “Vzor Specimen”.

Judge Clayson said that Qayume’s evidence about the document was “ridiculous”.

He said: "His account that he did not realise there might be anything wrong with an identity document in which the word “Specimen” appeared became beyond ludicrous when he added that he had actually met the individual concerned.”

Hanif Valli had claimed that he was only involved with the agency for six months before he left to concentrate on his work as a plumber.

He said he had no knowledge of cannabis growing in premises at Radcliffe Road, Cecilia Street, Deane Church Lane and Calder Road.

The three defendants added that they came under pressure from a gang of Chinese men from May 2012 after being accused him of stealing their cannabis growing equipment.

Bilal Valli admitted he was the owner of properties in Sapling Road and Willows Lane, but claimed he had no knowledge of cannabis being grown there.

Qayume also denied knowledge of cannabis growing at any of the properties he rented out, including one at Charles Holden Street.

The court heard that all three defendants were of previous good character.

But Judge Clayson said their accounts of being pressurised by others were undermined because they did not mention anything about it to police when arrested.

Text messages between them on mobile phones recovered by police also made no reference to any pressure they were under.

However, Judge Clayson did accept that the defendants had connections with men from the Far East who would supply the Vietnamese farmers they needed to run the cannabis farms.

He said: “This aspect of the case demonstrates just how serious and carefully planned was this criminal enterprise — for it clearly has aspects of human trafficking in the repeated use and abuse of people I judge were vulnerable."

He said the Valli brothers both played leading roles in the illegal drugs operation and Qayume was in a significant role, acting as a front and cover for the brothers.

A proceeds of crime hearing to strip the men of their ill-gotten gains will take place on November 24 and 25.