Leeds dealer trusted with known drugs line caught with £2,300 worth of stock
A dealer who was trusted with handling a busy drugs has been jailed after thousands of pounds of illegal substances were found.
Zain Akbar was handed a new jail sentence, having already been recalled for a previous affray matter in Leeds city centre.
Leeds Crown Court was told that the 23-year-old was driving a VW Golf that police pulled over on December 16 last year.
His home on Buckingham Avenue in Headingley was searched where more than £3,000 in cash was found.
Cannabis and cocaine were also found, along with further cash and dealer cards advertising cannabis and ketamine for sale.
The drugs recovered had a street value of £2,380, prosecutor Oishee Dey said.
Burner phones were also found which Ms Dey said showed he was “trusted” with a lucrative dealer line that addicts ring to have drugs supplied.
Following his arrest, Akbar refused to answer police questions.
He later admitted dealing in a Class A and a a Class B drug, and being concerned in the supply of a Class B drug.
He appeared in court via video link from HMP Leeds.
Akbar has three previous convictions. He was jailed in November 2024 after he was part of a group that attacked others in Leeds city centre as part of a counter-demonstration against the English Defence League.
He, along with four others, received a 20-month sentence.
Mitigating for the drug offences, Glen Parsons said Akbar “comes from a good family background” and was a “promising” student.
He said: “He is now someone who is waking up to his responsibilities.”
The judge, Recorder Jeremy Hill-Baker jailed him for two years and nine months.