Ageing dealers handed jail over mobile Leeds drug business
A pair of ageing drug dealers have been jailed for more than six years after being caught selling crack and heroin from a car.
David Jones was twice found plying his evil trade in Leeds last year by suspicious police. On the second occasion, Kevin Brown was with him. They both appeared at Leeds Crown Court this week.
The court heard that on August 28 last year, officers spotted what they thought was a drug deal taking place on Raynville Road in Bramley, so moved in to make arrests. The passenger of the VW Passat got out and was seen to throw a bag of white powder away as he tried to run. He was apprehended. He was jailed for four years in October of last year.
Jones, 49, was the driver on that occasion. However, less than two months later on October 1, police pulled over a car again on Whingate Road in Bramley with Jones driving and 58-year-old Brown in the passenger seat. He was found to have more than 50 wraps of heroin and crack cocaine in his trousers. More than £250 was found in Jones’ wallet.
Both Jones, of Mount Tabor Street, Pudsey and Brown, of Town Street, Bramley, admitted dealing in class A drugs.
Mitigating for Jones, Jennifer Devans-Tamakloe said he was an “habitual user” of drugs and was addicted. She said he had shown “genuine remorse” and had no previous convictions for drug dealing, despite having 14 previous convictions.
Having been held on remand, she said he had slowly weaned himself off the heroin substitute, methadone, and was now drug free.
For Brown, Shufqat Khan said he too had problems with drugs over the years and received “limited rewards” for dealing. He said he also had “difficulties over so many years”. Like Jones, despite having 17 previous convictions he had none for dealing in drugs.
Judge Christopher Batty said a custodial sentence was inevitable, and handed Jones 45 months, with Brown receiving 28 months.