A CONVICTED drug dealer and owner of a Weston restaurant has found that crime doesn’t pay after being ordered to pay back more than �16,000.

In January Darryl Hobbs was sentenced to two years and four months in prison for running a sophisticated cannabis factory in the town centre.

And now the 30-year-old has been told he must pay back �16,020 after a judge at Bristol Crown Court agreed that he had benefited from his criminal conduct.

The owner of Tokyo Wok, in Orchard Street, must pay the sum within six months or he will face an extra eight months behind bars, as well as still having to pay the order.

Hobbs, previously of Main Road in Hutton, was jailed after police raided a flat in Orchard Street in March of last year.

At the flat, officers found a sophisticated hydroponic system and cannabis which was said to have a value of �6,000 every four months or �1,500 a month.

A total of �10,000 in cash was also found on the premises.

He was sentenced to 28 months imprisonment by a judge at the crown court on January 9.

Dr Kirstie Cogram, from Avon and Somerset Constabulary’s financial investigation unit, said: “I hope this result reassures local residents that crime does not pay.

“One in seven people know someone living off the proceeds of crime. You could have the key piece of the jigsaw so please report any suspicions by calling our new non-emergency number, on 101.”