WORCESTER Thomas Laverty, the local plumber convicted last year of using his business as a front for a large marijuana grow while collecting public assistance, was sentenced to 12 years in federal prison Tuesday.
Laverty, 40, was convicted by a federal jury in Worcester last January on allegations he and his father, Charles Laverty, used their Millbury plumbing business, Chuck Laverty & Son, as a front for a huge illegal marijuana grow.
Over the course of the trial, jurors heard evidence regarding a sophisticated grow operation the Lavertys set up at a warehouse near Thomas Laverty’s home in Clinton.
The government said the two who were legitimate plumbers prior to the scheme hired workers to help them harvest as many as eight pounds of marijuana a week, an amount that could sell for $750,000 over a year.