Selling drugs to pay off debt lands dealer with 27 months prison sentence

Bradley Spencer (32) was found with drugs when police stopped and searched a VW Golf he was driving in Rotherham in December last year.

Mr Neil Coxon, prosecuting, told Sheffield Crown Court last Friday that police had had “reason to believe that the man was involved in drug dealing”.

They found 6.14 grams of cocaine in 76 packages, 70mg of crack cocaine valued at £760, and 4.14 grams of diamorphine in 65 wraps worth £650.

Spencer, who made no comment to police when interviewed, also had £547.80 cash on him.

The court heard he had seven previous convictions for 11 offences but the last one was more than ten years ago and none were drug-related.

Ms Rebecca Tanner, mitigating, said: “He [Spencer] accepts that he was in possession of Class A drugs.

“He accepts that he was directly dealing drugs to users.”

Ms Tanner added Spencer, of Binsted Road, Sheffield, had been using drugs and then fallen into debt.

He had been given the option to pay that debt back by dealing drugs, she said.

Ms Tanner said the money found on Spencer “was going to pay off his debt”, adding: “He was not motivated by profit. He was motivated by reducing the debt.

“There’s genuine remorse and regret on his part.

“He was naïve.”

Judge Rachael Harrison acknowledged that Spencer had no previous convictions for drug-related offences.

She said: “What you were doing was dealing drugs.

“You had 141 wraps of Class A drugs. You had some awareness and understanding of the scale of the operation.”

Spencer was jailed for 27 months for possession of Class A drugs with intent to supply.