A man who was caught selling heroin inside a church has credited an Angus church project for the fact he isn’t “in prison or dead”.
John Wilson, 32, was dealing at St Andrew’s Church in Arbroath to fund a heroin and amphetamines addiction.
He was caught “red handed” by Jim McLeod, a member of the church’s Havilah drop-in service for people with drug and alcohol problems.
Instead of reporting John to the police or barring him from the premises, Jim offered advice and support.
“When he caught me selling heroin Jim didn’t report me to the police but he told me what I was doing was wrong,” John said. “He didn’t judge me like most people in society judge drug addicts but he didn’t want to see me continuing to live my life in that way.”
Originally from Edinburgh, John moved to Arbroath when he was 21 in a bid to escape his troubles in the capital, where he had been sleeping rough.
He started to sell drugs to feed his habit and ended up serving two prison terms for shoplifting and assault.
With the Havilah project’s support John underwent a detox programme to become free of addiction in 2008 and he is now a senior worker at a Christian hostel in Rotherham.
He returned to St Andrew’s Church on Sunday to speak to the congregation.
“If I hadn’t met Jim at that time I know for a fact that I’d be serving a long prison sentence or I’d be dead,” John said.
“I can’t believe how big a turnaround in my life there’s been.”
John asked Jim to be his best man when he married Karen last year.
Jim said: “When I caught him dealing drugs I told him that he was welcome back to the church any time but that his drugs weren’t.
“We built up trust with each other over the next few months and, after completing rehab, he has turned out to be a remarkable young man.”
The Rev Martin Fair, minister of St Andrew’s Church, said: “Havilah has helped several people become drug-free.
“The congregation was hugely encouraged by John and showed the work was worthwhile.”