A candid drug dealer who was caught red-handed with nearly 50 deals told British Transport police: “This has happened twice before.”
Asamoah-Awuku-Addo, of Moredun Dykes Road, Edinburgh, admitted having cocaine with intent to supply it at Perth railway station on September 17 2021.
He appeared for sentence at Perth Sheriff Court and dodged jail because of his age.
The 20-year-old cocaine mule was told by a sheriff he had been hand-picked and exploited because his age meant he would not be jailed.
Sheriff’s warning
Sheriff Lindsay Foulis said: “You brought 46 wraps on this particular train to come to the Perth area and presumably you would be required to take back around £1,400 to the Edinburgh area.
“They will have given you the reassuring words…’don’t worry if you get caught because you are under 25 and your liberty won’t get taken away’…or something along those lines.
“One can only hope that you do learn the lesson and think ‘well, that was a close call and, but for my age and minimal record, I would lose my liberty.’
“I hope that’s the way you will be thinking, as opposed to ‘oh well, I took 46 wraps of cocaine to Perth worth £1,400 and I got a community-based disposal, so there’s nothing to stop me doing it again’.”
There is a presumption against jailing younger people in such circumstances.
Sheriff Foulis placed Asamoah-Awuku-Addo under supervision and ordered him to carry out 240 hours unpaid work as a direct alternative to custody.
‘You can’t fault his candour’
Fiscal depute Sarah Wilkinson told the court: “Officers from British Transport Police got a call to receive the 8.55pm arrival from Edinburgh.
“They detained the accused but he made off from the station car park and threw away a bag containing a quantity of wraps.
“He then dropped a Nokia mobile phone.
“He was apprehended a short distance away and told officers ‘this has happened twice before, innit. I was just dropping something off’.
“The accused was searched and an iPhone was recovered.
“The bag was analysed and found to contain 19.4 grams of cocaine sub-divided into 46 wraps, with a value of £1,420.”
Solicitor Paul Ralph, defending, said: “You can’t fault his candour.”
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