A judge will decide next month on what basis to sentence a man who built a secret bunker beneath his garden shed – using it to store cannabis.

Akil Budini, 40, of Rowan Grove, Oxford has already admitted involvement in the supply of the class B drug, although claims that it was another man who used the underground space as a store.

When police officers raided the property they found 6kg of the drug bagged up in the below-ground bunker.

The fingerprints of another man, who Budini said had stored the drugs there, were found on the wrapping. The drugs were estimated to be worth up to £72,000 on the street.

READ MORE: Pictures of secret cannabis bunker built beneath man's shed

The case came before Judge Michael Gledhill KC for sentence at Oxford Crown Court on Friday.

But there was disagreement about what Sentencing Council guideline category Budini’s role fell into.

The defendant’s barrister Sumita Mahtab-Shaikh argued it was category three – meaning street supply.

Told that a lawyer reviewing the case for the Crown Prosecution Service had agreed with that categorisation, Judge Gledhill told instructed prosecuting barrister Steven Molloy: “Pass on my compliments to whoever came to that ludicrous conclusion.”

He suggested that the case could, in his opinion, fall into category one in the Sentencing Council guidelines – carrying a recommended sentence of between five and seven years’ imprisonment.

Judge Gledhill adjourned the case for a Newton Hearing on January 9, when a judge will hear evidence from the parties and decide the level of Budini’s involvement.

Oxford Mail: Inside the bunker beneath Akil Budini's shedInside the bunker beneath Akil Budini's shed (Image: CPS)

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This story was written by Tom Seaward. He joined the team in 2021 as Oxfordshire's court and crime reporter.  

To get in touch with him email: Tom.Seaward@newsquest.co.uk

Follow him on Twitter: @t_seaward