A man who was caught with 27g of cocaine hidden in his underpants has avoided jail after admitting being concerned in the supply of drugs.
Derek Culross was stopped by police on the A9 northbound at Daviot Woods on May 25 last year after intelligence indicated he was travelling to Inverness supplying drugs.
Fiscal depute Ruaridh Allison told the court the 65-year-old informed officers he was travelling to the Highland city to visit a friend, despite the fact that lockdown travel restrictions were in place at the time.
Suspect was strip-searched
The court heard that Culross was subsequently detained and strip-searched at which point, a bag of white powder was recovered from his underpants.
Tests later confirmed the bag contained 27.65 grams of cocaine.
Culross, of Campbell Street, Renfrew, initially claimed it was for personal use, but later admitted a charge of being concerned in supplying the Class A drug.
Defence solicitor Cecily Kingston told the sentencing hearing her client was a hardworking man who was responsible for the care of his live-in partner, who suffers from mobility issues and vertigo following a stroke and who would be vulnerable to injury in the event she was left to live alone.
She said: “He accepts that it is entirely his own wrongdoing and a very serious offence,”
Sheriff Gary Aitken told Culross: “The courts have repeatedly made it clear that those who engage in the supply of class A drugs will be dealt with very severely.”
But, as an alternative to a custodial sentence, Culross was placed on a Community Payback Order with two years’ supervision and 210 hours of unpaid work.
