A 45-year-old man who's lived in Whitehorse since 1994 with his wife and two kids was sentenced to one year in jail for his involvement with a marijuana grow-operation.

Zhu Dong Liang was sentenced this morning to a one-year jail term for producing marijuana. He will also serve a three-month and another one-year sentence at the same time for stealing electricity and possession of cocaine.

Further charges of pot production, possession of marijuana and stealing electricity were stayed by the crown.

While territorial court Judge John Faulkner said the sentence, brought forward by both crown and defence lawyers, struck him as being lenient, he said he had been presented with enough case law which showed the punishment was not out of the appropriate range.

Liang was charged along with seven other men after police conducted search warrants on a number of Whitehorse properties last year.

When the trial started on Monday, Liang entered a guilty plea before a number of motions were brought forward by the other accused.

It's expected the motions will take about three weeks to hear, with the remainder of the trial scheduled for another three weeks next January.

An agreed statement of facts on Liang's case notes that last Sept. 22, police executed a search warrant on the 208 Falcon Drive residence where Liang was listed as a tenant and as the subscriber to the Yukon Electric account.

A total of 877 marijuana plants were seized from the basement along with production equipment and items used to divert electricity. Liang was found in the basement with another man, who's also charged in the case. A total of 1.5 ounces of cocaine was found in his pants pocket.

This morning, crown prosecutor Noel Sinclair told the court Liang's early guilty plea has provided some certainty for the crown's case against him. It's also saved considerable court time and resources because Liang had a motion challenging the validity of the search on 208 Falcon. If an order had been made quashing that search warrant, it could have impacted other motions before the court on the case, he said.

Though Liang's guilty plea came as the trial was starting, Sinclair pointed out it was only recently made an offer on the charges that was accepted in short order.

'The guilty plea has wide ranging consequences,' he said.

Liang has also accepted responsibility in the matter by pleading guilty, Sinclair said.

Among the aggravating factors in the case is the sophistication and size of the grow-operation and the impact that can have in a small community.

Defence lawyer Ed Horembala pointed out his client has no criminal history and supports his two kids. He's accepted this as a hardworking citizen, the lawyer stressed.

A Canadian citizen, Liang has lived in the country since 1992 and in the Yukon since 1994. He has worked as a cook since moving to Whitehorse until April 2005, when was laid-off, in part due to a medical condition.

He lives with his wife of 20 years and they have two teenagers, one who is attending college in B.C. and another who goes to high school in Whitehorse.

Since being arrested last fall, he's worked as a cook at the Gold Rush Inn, with his work hours split so he can have some time off his feet to help his medical problem.

After being taken into custody Monday, Liang has worked in the kitchen at the Whitehorse Correctional Centre, Horembala said.

As Liang sat next to Horembala, he listened to the proceedings through headphones set up so he could hear the case in Cantonese.

While a translator sat in a booth set up in a corner of the courtroom, speaking into a microphone for Liang, another translator was next to him so he and Horembala could speak to one another.

At the back of the court room gallery sat Liang's wife, calmly watching the proceedings.

In handing down the sentence, Faulkner recalled the circumstances of the case and the factors listed by crown and defence which would impact the jail term, noting that no Yukon precedence exist in this type of case.

A 10-year firearms ban was also imposed.

Meanwhile, territorial court Judge Karen Ruddy is hearing the main trial and applications on the case. Today's proceedings for the other accused were set to begin at 10 p.m., but were later adjourned.

Ruddy had been scheduled to hear motions regarding the cases of Wei Min Zhai and Kwok Yiu Cheung who are both being represented by defence lawyer Gord Coffin.

The translators for the case remained in the Unitech booth as court opened following Liang's sentencing, with headphones set up at the empty jury box, boxes of Kleenex beside them. Another set of headphones were at the same table as Coffin for the accused to hear the translation. Only one of the seven men charged sat next to Coffin.

The matter was later adjourned.