Dad jailed over 'sophisticated' crop house

A Melbourne father has been jailed after raids uncovered a "sophisticated" crop house with more than 50kg of cannabis at his suburban home.

Khalil Saydali admitted cultivating a commercial quantity of cannabis and theft.

The 40-year-old father of three was arrested at his Mill Park home when police raided the property in August 2019 and found four "grow rooms".

They uncovered more than 91 cannabis plants in the rooms which when weighed came to more than 54kg, Victorian County Court Judge Susan Pullen said on Wednesday.

She said this was double the commercial quantity of the drug.

"Your offending was not spontaneous and was not driven by hardship," Judge Pullen said during sentencing.

Instead Saydali was a "crop sitter" who took part in a "sophisticated" hydroponic cannabis operation, she said.

The theft related to a bypass system used to steal electricity to grow the plants, the court was told.

Saydali initially denied the illegal drugs operation but pointed to a mysterious man called "Jayk" who was responsible for the scheme.

The man - who has not been found - had a key to the house and had been growing the plants in the property for several months.

But Saydali later admitted he volunteered to tend the plants and received two rent payments.

While he did not live a "flashy lifestyle" the money went towards supporting him, Judge Pullen said.

Saydali told the court he feared for his daughters' safety because they were living in Iran, but this was rejected by the judge.

"In my opinion you were not giving much thought to your children's needs," she said.

He was jailed for two years and four months with a non-parole period of 18 months, but has already served 317 days.