A four-man gang who operated a 'professionally run' drugs factory slipped up when their own CCTV footage was used in court against them.

Despite being caught red-handed, one of the men - Maurice Brooks - did not seem that perturbed, grinning from ear to ear in his custody image.

The four men, aged between 32 and 44, pleaded guilty at Croydon Crown Court after a investigation by Sutton detectives closed down a major drugs factory in Carshalton.

Officers raided the factory in February last year, which was hidden in a number of shipping containers in secluded lane Lower Pillory Down running alongside Woodcote Park Golf Course.

Ten shotguns, over £12,000 in cash, 350g of dried skunk and 160 cannabis plants were seized.

Footage from the gang's CCTV system, stolen from one of the gang's employers and installed to protect their 'business', showed them visiting the factory regularly for several hours at a time.

Detective Sergeant Julian Phillips, who led the investigation, said: "Evidence obtained from the defendants' own CCTV they had installed at the venue assisted in their convictions."

The gang were sentenced to total of 118 months' imprisonment on Tuesday, July 21, after pleading guilty.

Leader Steven Brooks, aged 42, of Lower Pillory Down, was given a 54 month sentence for the production of cannabis and four months to run concurrently for possession of a firearm.

His brother Maurice Brooks, 35, also of Lower Pillory Down, received 13 months' imprisonment for his part in cannabis production.

Leigh Yarrow, 32, of Ross Road, Wallington, was handed a 24 month sentence for his gardening role in the drugs production.

Finally Michael Searl, 44, of Shaldon Drive, Morden, received 27 months' imprisonment for his role in the production of cannabis.

The Brooks brothers and Yarrow were arrested together when officers raided the factory in February.