A Dundee man was jailed after he admitted dealing heroin at a hospital while there for surgery.
James Foley was caught with a roll of cash and almost £2,000 worth of the Class A drug stuffed into his shoe while he was admitted to Ninewells Hospital.
He was undergoing surgery for an abcess and was admitted to the high dependency unit to recover.
When a nurse moved his belongings from one ward to another, she discovered his hidden hoard inside a trainer and reported it to police.
A sheriff jailed Foley for two years and three months and told him: “It’s extremely difficult to understand why anyone in their right mind would take these drugs in to hospital.”
Fiscal depute Charmaine Gilmartin told Dundee Sheriff Court: “On January 28 last year the accused was admitted to Ninewells for an operation on a groin abcess. After the operation he was taken to the HDU on January 29.
“The following day, a nurse noticed a quantity of cash in one of his trainers. She took the trainers to a colleague and £220 in cash was found.
“A quantity of drugs was also recovered and police were contacted. In total there were 36.81 grams of heroin with a potential street value of £1,840.”
Foley, 40, of Bute Drive, Perth, pleaded guilty on indictment to a charge of being concerned in the supply of heroin at Ninewells Hospital on January 30 last year.
Solicitor Billy Sommerville said: “He had purchased the drugs to use some himself and sell the rest.
“He’s aware he will receive a custodial sentence.”
Sheriff Alastair Brown jailed Foley for 27 months and said: “You have previously served a three-year sentence for an analogous offence.”
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