PLAIN clothes police officers watched as a Warrington man attempted to supply heroin and cocaine in the street near a skate park, a court was told.
Christian Foster, 55, of Farrell Street, Howley, was jailed for 28 months at Liverpool Crown Court after previously pleading guilty to two offences of possessing Class A drugs with intent to supply.
A judge described the location used by Christian Foster to supply wraps of crack cocaine and heroin as “worrying.”
“It is an aggravating feature that this was a park bench and in the park nearby was a children’s play area and a skate park,” said Judge Stuart Driver, KC.
He pointed out that he has 21 previous convictions and about a month before the offences had been given a community sentence.
“That court gave you a chance but you responded by starting or continuing to supply drugs.”
The court was told two police officers stopped and searched Foster after seeing him acting suspiciously in St Elphin’s Close, Howley.
The court heard how at around 2.30pm on Tuesday March 26, two plain clothes officers on patrol noticed Foster acting suspiciously.
As the officers were watching him, he was approached by two men and appeared to pull a package out of his clothing.
He was subsequently stopped by officers and during a search was found in possession of a mobile phone, a small amount of cash and bag containing wraps of heroin and crack cocaine, valued at approximately £790.
Foster was arrested at the scene and subsequently charged in relation to the incident.
Olivia Brooksbank-Laing, defending, said that Foster had been at the scene “under direction from others to deal. As the police officer pointed out that the area is rife with drug dealing.”
She said he is vulnerable to pressure and struggles with dyslexia but did not seek to excuse his behaviour. “He is a user of crack cocaine and heroin, the latter for 20 years.”
Miss Brooksbank-Laing said that Foster had suffered a terrible series of family bereavements in a very short period and he also suffers with a number of health conditions.
He has had help kicking his heroin habit though is still troubled with his crack addiction. He and his wife support each other with their problems, she said.
When Foster was led to the cells his wife, who was in the public gallery, told him “love you” and he asked, “will you be all right?’.
Following the sentencing Detective Constable Vicky Hancox of Warrington Proactive Policing Team said: “Thanks to the work of the two eagle-eyed officers another drug dealer is now behind bars.
“This is a fantastic result and I hope it acts as a warning to others planning to deal drugs in Cheshire – demonstrating that you never know who is watching.
“Illegal drugs can have a devastating impact, not only to drug users, but also the community around them.
“Here in Warrington, we are doing all we can to stop drug activity on our streets to make the town a safer place to live and visit, while also making it extremely difficult for these offenders to operate.
“We will always act on any information about drug activity provided to us and would urge anyone who believes this activity is happening near to them to get in touch.”
