A man who admitted possession of Class A drugs with intent to supply has been jailed today at Carlisle Crown court.
Nicky Griffiths, 38, of Botchergate, Carlisle admitted two charges of possession of Class A drugs with intent to supply and a charge of possession of criminal property and was sentenced to 5 years and 7 months.
The court heard how, on 15 November 2019, officers from the drugs squad based in North Cumbria executed a search warrant at an address in Stonegarth, Carlisle.
Officers forced entry to the property but were delayed getting inside as the front door had been barricaded with a large plank of wood.
Once inside they found Griffiths and suspected he had attempted to flush drugs down the toilet. Suspicions were confirmed when a single wrap of heroin was found floating in the toilet.
Officers acted quickly and swiftly identified the sewage drain linked to the property in the back garden. Officers opened the pipe and, whilst it is suspected some were flushed away, they were able to recover four wraps of heroin and three wraps of cocaine.
A further search of the property led to officers seizing a Samsung mobile phone, digital scales and around £450 in cash. Bags were also recovered which were suspected of being used for the wrapping and preparing of drugs for sale.
Griffiths was questioned in custody and initially told officers the drugs were for his own use before admitting he had been dealing drugs.
Detective Constable James Aiston said: “The arrest and subsequent conviction of Griffiths was the result of good intelligence, planning and quick-thinking at the scene which meant key evidence was not lost.
“Cumbria Constabulary is committed to pursuing anyone and everyone connected to the supply of Class A drugs in the county and today’s result shows the consequences that await those who are caught being involved in dealing drugs.”
