A man who travelled almost 350 miles to smuggle less than three grammes of cannabis in a crisp bag from the Perth Prison visiting room vending machine has been fined.
Simon Donnell, from Chelmsley Wood on the edge of Birmingham, was caught trying to introduce the contraband to the Edinburgh Road jail on June 4 last year.
The 33-year-old was snared by eagle-eyed prison staff while he visited a friend behind bars.
Prison officers confronted him after he had dropped wraps of the Class B drug into open packets of crisps he bought.
Donnell returned to Perth and was fined after the court heard the legislation he was prosecuted under had a maximum prison sentence of just 30 days.
Golden blunder
Fiscal depute Andrew Harding told Perth Sheriff Court: “At 2.30pm on June 4 2024, the accused attended at the locus to visit an associate.
“He bought a snack from the vending machine and put it on the table, taking a seat.
“The accused took two small wraps out his pocket and dropped them into an open packet of crisps.
“He offered the packet of crisps to the associate.
“The accused was thereafter challenged by a member of the prison staff and the wraps were discovered.”
Within the wraps was 2.6g of what later tested positive for cannabis.
Guilt admitted
At a hearing in October, Donnell pled guilty to bringing or attempting to bring drugs into prison and sentencing was deferred for reports.
His solicitor Iain McCafferty said: “The court will appreciate he tendered a plea at the first calling and travelled up from the Birmingham area to have the matter dealt with.”
Donnell have been entitled to a 33% discount on the maximum 30-day sentence due to his early plea.
Mr McCafferty said his client receives benefits and acts as a carer for his mother.
Donnell, of Keepers Gate in Chelmsley Wood near Solihull, was fined £420.
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