A Fife drug dealer caught with more than 7,000 street valium tablets has been jailed for 14 months.
Andrew Caldow has four previous convictions for crimes relating to drug supply, Dunfermline Sheriff Court heard.
He appeared in the dock for sentencing alongside accomplice Gareth Inglis, after the pair pled guilty to being concerned in the supply of etizolam at an address in Dundonald Park, Cardenden, on October 30 2020.
Class C etizolam is becoming a common alternative to prescription diazepam but is commonly 10 times stronger and dangerous if misused.
Inglis, who has no similar previous convictions, was given a four-and-a-half month curfew order and offender supervision for a year.
Sentencing, Sheriff Krista Johnston said: “In this community this particular drug, etizolam, is a blight on society”.
The sheriff highlighted Caldow did not appear willing to embrace offender supervision and said the sentence imposed must be a deterrent for a crime which causes untold damage to communities.
Personal drugs and cash from bookies
The court heard previously Caldow, 39, of Loanhead Avenue in Lochore, was then living at the Dundonald Park address and Inglis was an associate.
Prosecutor Sarah Wilkinson said police searched the property and tubs containing blue etizolam tablets were discovered in the sofa by police dogs.
The fiscal said a total of 7,178 etizolam tablets were found with a potential street value of £1,600.
£2,280 in cash was recovered from a living room sofa and a mobile phone belonging to Caldow contained messages indicating drug deals.
Caldow initially denied supplying drugs and said the tablets belonged to him for personal use.
He claimed some of the cash was borrowed money and some won at the bookies.
Challenged about the quantity of cash despite being on benefits, he said: “Because I don’t spend a lot”.
Dealing to fund own habits
Inglis’ DNA was found on the knot of a bag and Caldow’s on some scales, the court heard.
Fingerprints from 36-year-old Inglis, of Ballingry Road, Ballingry, were found on items including a book with notations and a ticklist.
Lawyers for both accused said they had turned to dealing to fund their own habits.
Another etizolam dealer in an unconnected case, John Healy, who was caught with 61,000 pills after a police raid, was also due to be sentenced this week but the court heard he has been admitted to hospital.
At an earlier hearing, Healy pled guilty to being concerned in supply of the drugs at his home in Dunfermline‘s Bleachfield Court on November 4 2022.
His sentencing was further deferred until September 2.
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