English Philanthropists Jailed for Growing Cannabis

The most unusual cannabis growing case of its type.

That’s how prosecutor Jon Dee described the life of Michael Foster and Susan Cooper. The couple recently received three years in jail after making £400,000 over a period of six years from illegally growing and selling cannabis.

But there’s a twist to this story. Most of the profits from the cannabis business went to aid poor families in a Kenyan village and charity.

In 2004 on their farm in Long Sutton, Lincolnshire, the couple converted two buildings to house their cannabis grow operation; each building with a growing room and a drying room. With their operation able to process over a hundred plants at a time, Michael and Susan were pushing cannabis on a commercial level, providing kilos for a local drug dealer.

 Michael and Susan would frequently fly to Southern Kenya and visit a village in the Kwale district near the tourist town of Mombasa. While there they would spend a majority of their cannabis cash helping the children of the village. The pair paid for surgical procedures, medical treatments, schooling, computers and more over the six year period.

In 2010 an officer was pursuing a burglar in the area when he happened to smell cannabis coming from the home. When the officer knocked on the door, Susan answered the door. According to reports the officer asked if she knew why he was there, and she answered “Yes I do”. Officers found the two grow buildings with over 159 plants worth roughly £20,000. Officers also found £20,000 in a to go bag on the property.

Susan and Michael were sentenced to 3 years in jail after admitting to four charges of producing cannabis and one charge of possessing criminal cash.

I’ve seen some reaction to this story and most of it is negative towards the police and judicial system. You have to understand that the police are just doing their job. Cannabis is illegal by law, and the police and judicial system did their job according to the law.

But at some point we have to listen to the will of the people.

Do the ends justify the means? Are Susan and Michael consequences of ridiculous cannabis laws? Or is breaking the law, no matter how ridiculous, always punishable no matter the outcomes?