A pub chef who delivered some cocaine wraps to a woman as a favour was caught red-handed when the police arrived.
Bizarrely a court heard that the officers had been called by the woman and man who gave the courier, Andrew Smallbone, half of the wraps back.
Smallbone’s barrister, Kyra Badman, described the case, which was heard at Liverpool Crown Court, as “very odd.”
Smallbone, aged 30 of Orange Grove, Poulton-with-Fernhead, Warrington, pleaded guilty to possessing cocaine with intent to supply.
Paul Blasbery, prosecuting, said that on September 30 last year the defendant received 12 messages from a woman called Anne Marie “asking him to get her some stuff.”
He attended with a zip lock bag containing six bags each containing half a gram of cocaine, worth £200, which she had requested. Shortly afterwards a bald man came back to the door with three of the bags.
The police were called and Smallbone was found with the three bags of cocaine and another one for his own use, said Mr Blasbery.
When interviewed he said that after receiving the 12 messages he had taken the drugs round because he thought he was helping someone out.
When the bald man came down he asked him to pay for the missing three wraps because he was concerned as he had to pay for them.
Smallbone explained he had not profited from the drugs as he planned to take the money for them back to where he had got them from in the first place.
The court heard that he has three previous convictions for nine offences including possession of cocaine.
Miss Badman said that the defendant had delivered the drugs as a one-off. HIs mobile phone was seized by police and nothing untoward was found on it.
He is a hard working dad-of-two and he has since stopped using cocaine and has paid off his £300 drugs debt, she said.
The judge, Recorder Mark Ainsworth said that the offence took place more than a year ago and he has stayed out of trouble since. He has responsibilities to his children and his employer.
He sentenced him to 20 months imprisonment suspended for 18 months and he was ordered to carry out 200 hours unpaid work and 15 days rehabilitation activities.
