An Angus woman who agreed to keep £89,000 worth of heroin in her home to pay off a drug debt has been jailed for 32 months.
Donna Carnegie, 45, of Arbroath’s Emislaw Drive, had racked up a £1,200 debt to dealers and agreed to store 891.7 grammes of heroin to wipe out what she owed.
Carnegie, who previously appeared on indictment, had admitted being concerned in the supply of heroin after police searched her home in May following a tip-off.
Police found that the property was locked so they forced entry.
The search commenced and officers found two locked cash tins in a wardrobe in the bedroom one red and one blue.
Police searched the tins and found four bags; three in the red one and one in the blue.
The bags totalled 891.7 grammes with an approximate street value of £89,170.
Carnegie discovered that police were looking for her and she handed herself in to Arbroath police station four days later.
Defence agent Lynne Sturrock said that her client had a long-standing drug difficulty that worsened following the death of her son eight or nine years ago.
Ms Sturrock said Carnegie then fell into a significant amount of debt in April and was given the opportunity to wipe it out in full if she kept the drugs.
She said: “She originally refused and said she wasn’t interested but she continued to fall into debt and the pressure and intimidation increased.
“She was only to keep the drugs for two or three days but that is when the search was carried out.
“She handed herself in to police when she heard her property had been searched.
“She is extremely ashamed of her actions but she found herself in a very difficult position due to her drug habit.
“She is under no illusions and has asked me to apologise to the court for her involvement in this.”
Sheriff Gregor Murray said it was a “graphic illustration of the misery drugs can bring to an area.”
He said he had taken into account the early plea and Carnegie’s cooperation with police in the ongoing case.
However, the sheriff said he could not get away from the gravity of the offence and sentenced Carnegie to 32 months in jail.
That was a reduction from 48 months due to the early plea and was backdated to November 19.