Cocaine dealer prepares for prison
A LERWICK man who has admitted dealing cocaine must wait more than a month before he is sentenced after the prosecution said he was more deeply involved in trafficking than he had claimed.
Paul Grant, of 57 Burgh Road, had already pled guilty to being concerned in the supply of the class A drug at Lerwick’s Freefield and elsewhere between 4 November last year and 25 February this year.
On Wednesday at Lerwick Sheriff Court, procurator fiscal Duncan Mackenzie said the 25 year old had tried to play down his role in the drug trade.
Defence agent Tommy Allan described a background report by social workers as “generally favourable”, pointing out to the court that it contained “good references”.
But Mackenzie said there were significant discrepancies between the social work report and the evidence police found after they stopped Grant in the town because of the manner of his driving.
After finding a bag of cocaine with a street value of £1,638 in the vehicle, they searched his home and found a number of mobile phones that suggested he was in control of “a tightly knit network of sub dealers”.
The fiscal said there were a multitude text messages relating to wholesale and smaller scale deals, with references to prices, quantities of cocaine ranging up to two ounces, and drug debts of three or figure sums.
There were also scales, cut up plastic food bags and a note relating to a £550 transaction.
“Now that’s completely at odds with what he’s saying to the social worker,” Mackenzie said.
Setting a hearing for 23 January to hear proof of mitigation, Sheriff Philip Man said the defence would be “hard pressed” to persuade him not to hand down a jail sentence.
Allan said Grant had taken “a clear message” from the sheriff’s words and would use the intervening period while on bail to order his affairs.
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