A man has been charged and is due in court next week after a closed Macclesfield town centre bank was converted into a cannabis farm.

Officers from the Macclesfield Local Policing Unit were first alerted to the 700-plant cannabis farm inside the former bank building on Chestergate after a member of the public reported a strong smell of the drug in the area on 8 May.

The cannabis plants were found at varying stages of growth, along with heat lighting, fans, irrigation systems and were spread over three floors.

Voktot Isufaj, of no fixed abode, Winsford, has now been charged with one count of production of class B drugs (cannabis).

The 43-year-old is due to appear at Chester Crown Court on Monday 16 June after being charged on 10 May at Crewe Magistrates Court where he was remanded in custody.