Authorities discovered a group of foreign nationals on a sprawling 324-acre property during a police raid in Milnes Bridge, near Kerang, this past Tuesday.

Officers stumbled upon ten expansive greenhouses on the rural estate, which reportedly housed around 4,700 cannabis plants.

According to police, five men tried to escape the premises by running through the bushland and leaping over a fence.

In a bid to evade capture, three of the men allegedly resorted to diving into a nearby irrigation channel.

However, officers managed to apprehend four of the men after a brief pursuit.

The arrested individuals, aged 39, 41, and two aged 51, now face charges related to the cultivation and trafficking of a substantial commercial amount of cannabis.

They faced Bendigo Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday and were remanded to appear again on 13 May.

A fifth man remains at large.

Forensic specialists spent three days dismantling the illicit crop houses.

The plants, which weighed more than 2.5 tonnes altogether, will be destroyed following forensic examination.

Police also seized electronic devices, CCTV hardware and items allegedly used to bypass electricity.

Detective Acting Inspector Matt Pascoe called the alleged cannabis bust “a win for community safety”.

“We know the cultivation and trafficking of drugs is what fuels organised crime groups,” Pascoe said.

“Police remain committed to targeting those in the production of illicit drugs and those involved in this activity should know we have you in our sights.

“This investigation remains ongoing and we implore anyone with information to come forward to police.”

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