A repeat drug offender was caught with a haul of cocaine worth up to £865,000 on the streets after officers stopped him as he drove towards Dundee.
Paul Harkess was found to have three high purity kilos of the Class A drug in his car when it was stopped on the outskirts of Dundee.
He jumped from his moving car and tried to flee after police caught up with him in an A90 layby.
A further two kilos of cocaine were later recovered during a search of his flat in the Castlemilk area of Glasgow.
Tried flee police
The High Court in Edinburgh heard that on June 16 this year police received intelligence that Harkess, 52, was driving from Glasgow with a large quantity of cocaine.
Advocate depute Leanne Cross said: “Intelligence suggested that the accused was in his black Citroen motor vehicle and was already en route north.”
The prosecutor said officers were instructed to trace the car and it was spotted on the A90 road northbound, near to the Longforgan junction and heading towards Dundee.
She said officers in a police vehicle activated their blue lights and siren and signalled Harkess to stop, but he ignored them and continued to drive.
“The accused’s vehicle was successfully stopped a short distance later at the end of a layby.
“Prior to the vehicle actually coming to a stop, the accused tried to get out of the car and run from the police officers but he was quickly apprehended by them and handcuffed.”
She said that before the car halted a mobile phone had been thrown from the driver’s side.
Three taped blocks of cocaine were found in the rear of the car, inside a Slaters carrier bag.
73% purity cocaine
The advocate depute told the court: “The average street purity of cocaine in the north of Scotland is currently 42%.
“The purity of the cocaine recovered was 73%.
“If adulterated to bring the purity to around 42%, these five blocks could potentially yield between £605,500 and £865,000.”
Miss Cross said drug expert officers “had no difficulty in concluding that, on the basis of the quantity recovered, this cocaine was for onward supply.”
The court heard unemployed Harkess has a string of previous convictions including for robbery, drug supply and cannabis cultivation.
He admitted being concerned in the supply of cocaine on June 16 this year on the northbound A90 and at his flat in Downcraig Drive, Glasgow.
He also pled guilty to failing to stop after being required to do so by police.
Defence solicitor advocate Murray Macara KC said Harkess has previously undergone treatment for cancer and had concerns it may have returned and spread.
The judge, Lord Armstrong, called for a background report to be prepared before sentencing and told him he would continue to be detained until then.
