A couple desperately sprayed air freshener to try to disguise the smell of £100,000 of cannabis they were moving in a van.
Ian Kennedy, 42, and Jasmine Vaughan-Jones, 31, were transporting 9.5kg of the drug from Liverpool to Wirral.
But the smell coming from the transit van was so strong that police stopped the vehicle and discovered 14 bin bags of the plant.
Kennedy was on licence at the time for killing Vaughan-Jones' dad, after a dangerous hydroponic system he set up at their family home caught fire.
He was jailed for four years and four months in May 2017 for the manslaughter of his father-in-law, Joseph Vaughan-Jones, 63.
Kennedy was today sent back to prison, but his partner walked free from court because of her caring and parental responsibility.
Liverpool Crown Court heard officers halted the pungent van in Stanley Road, Bootle, at around 2.20pm, on April 14 this year.
Philip Clemo, prosecuting, said they spoke to the pair and Vaughan-Jones had "clearly tried to mask the smell with an aerosol".
He said the cannabis had an estimated street value between £92,540 and £138,816.
Kennedy, a former soldier of no fixed address, and Vaughan-Jones, of Penkett Road, Wallasey, both gave "no comment" interviews.
The couple both admitted possessing cannabis with intent to supply after entering basis of plea, which were accepted by prosecutors.
Kennedy said he was a cannabis addict and agreed to deliver the drugs to Bidston for £500 and a 49g bag of cannabis found in the van.
Vaughan-Jones said she had been going with Kennedy to buy some trainers for her son in Liverpool, when Kennedy received a phone call.
She said they got out of a friend's car in Liverpool and Kennedy told her to get in a van, because he had to take some stuff "over the water".
Vaughan-Jones said she saw him put some items in the glove compartment of the van and asked what it was and he said cannabis.
She said Kennedy told her cannabis was in the back of the vehicle and there was a strong smell, so she used air freshener to try and disguise it, then sprayed some more when she realised police were behind them.
Vaughan-Jones said she understood her partner was taking the cannabis to someone in Wirral, but had no idea how much there was.
Kennedy has 11 past convictions for 12 offences, including manslaughter, which relates to the tragic blaze in Penkett Road on August 14, 2015.
He set up a hydroponic system connected to "sub-standard electrics" to grow 25 unidentified plants at the Victorian house he shared with Vaughan-Jones, their children, and her parents, but didn't fit smoke detectors.
They all escaped the fire, but Mr Vaughan-Jones suffered serious burns and smoke inhalation, and he died four weeks later in hospital.
Kennedy was released on bail, but one year later was caught running a £11,200 cannabis farm at his dad's flat, above Nova Restaurant in Pensby Road, Heswall.
The dad-of-two later claimed he was growing the 'Blueberry Cheese' variety to give to his dog, which had cured the pet of cancer.
He always denied growing cannabis at the family home - suggesting it was tomatoes - but admitted producing cannabis at the other location.
Kennedy spent five years in the Army with the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers before leaving the force and becoming a HGV driver.
Lloyd Morgan, defending Kennedy, said although 9.5kg was recovered in the van, some of this was cropped cannabis stalks and waste material.
He said Kennedy was acting under direction, selling drugs to which he was addicted, and his remorse was shown by his guilty plea.
Mr Morgan said the HGV driver returning to jail would have an impact on others, including his mum, for whom he was a registered carer.
He said: "Miss Vaughan-Jones has stepped into the breach there, but his mother has suffered serious illness, and of course he and Miss Vaughan-Jones have two children, aged 10 and 14."
The court heard Vaughan-Jones has seven previous convictions for 16 offences, but none for drugs, and was last in trouble in 2008.
Simon Christie, defending Vaughan-Jones, said she was acting under Kennedy's direction and urged Judge Robert Trevor-Jones to spare her jail.
The judge said while not all of the cannabis included female flowering heads and there were some stalks, nevertheless, it weighed around 9kg.
He said: "In roundabout terms it would be worth about £100,000, so a very substantial amount."
Judge Trevor-Jones told Kennedy he had a relevant criminal background including "the manslaughter of Miss Vaughan-Jones' late father, arising out of a fire that took place and clearly took hold at the property concerned because of the crop that was being illegally produced".
He said that along with the fact he was on licence were significant aggravating factors and jailed him for 21 months.
The judge told Vaughan-Jones: "I bear in mind obviously you're the mother of two children, children with your co-accused.
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"Although your mother as it might be said is freely available to step into the breach were you to be sentenced to immediate custody today, you too have stepped in as needs be to care for Mr Kennedy's mother."
He said this was an "important factor" and that he believed there was "a realistic prospect of rehabilitation".
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Judge Trevor-Jones handed her nine months in jail, suspended for 18 months, a 20-day Rehabilitation Activity Requirement, and three-month home curfew, from 9pm to 6am daily.
