One seemingly clever Japanese janitor tried masking the appearance of his marijuana plants by making them look like bonsai trees, but was eventually caught on by Osaka police.
The Japanese janitor’s side job backfired when police discovered his apartment held 21 marijuana plants, 212 grams of marijuana worth around $10,000 in street value, according to Herb. These lush-looking plants had leaves that grew to a staggering 40 cm (15.7 inches) long, some of which were already a little over a foot high.
It seems that even Ohashi himself was impressed with his herb-growing achievement as he told authorities that it was the first time he had come up with “such a great crop.” After the blue-collar worker was questioned by local police about his unique method, he simply replied that it was done in order to conserve space in his cramped apartment.
While most marijuana growers often cultivate their herbs in a very discreet manner, Ohashi opted to proudly display his freshly-grown greens instead.
Unfortunately for Ohashi, marijuana-cultivation is frowned upon in Japan and possession and the sale of the herb could land the offender in jail for up to five years, along with potential public and media scrutiny that comes with the grave offense.
Even just a small amount of marijuana can warrant Japanese citizens to be sentenced to jail as what happened when a Hiroshima resident was caught mindlessly smuggling marijuana from Europe. Although in some extremely rare cases, the jail time stemming from this offense can be lowered to six months.
