Drug dealer claimed he borrowed jacket filled with drugs during Leeds stop and search
Judge called his explanation as “somewhat desperate”
A dealer caught with heroin and crack cocaine tried to claim the jacket he was wearing was borrowed.
More than £500 worth of drugs were found in the pockets of the coat worn by Ibocwa Toyi during a stop and search, Leeds Crown Court heard.
Despite possessing a phone that contained messages related to dealing, the 27-year-old maintained the drugs were not his.
He finally admitted two counts of dealing in Class A drugs days into his trial.
Judge Richard Mansell KC said: “Your defence was somewhat desperate.
“You borrowed a jacket that, by pure chance, had a very valuable stash of drugs in the pockets.”
Prosecutor Anthony Moore said an Audi A3 had been stopped around Easy Road, near Simmons Court in Cross Green, at around 8pm on June 29, 2024.
Toyi was a passenger and the police were initially only wanting to speak with the driver.
However, Toyi had a joint of cannabis on him so officers carried out the search where they found 19 wraps of heroin in one pocket, and 32 wraps of crack cocaine in the other.
Toyi, of Camberley Mount, Bradford, later claimed he had left his own jacket at a friend’s house, went to retrieve it and told it wasn’t there, so borrowed the jacket containing the drugs.
A probation report found that Rwandan-born Toyi had “got involved with the wrong crowd” and although unemployed, had his own business buying and selling designer clothing.
Mitigating, Shila Whitehead said sitting in the dock for the four days of his trial had served as a “short, sharp shock”, resulting in him changing his pleas to guilty.
She added: “He knows he was very wrong what he got involved with.”
Judge Mansell told Toyi: “I accept you made a big mistake. You drifted into Class-A drug supply as a means to make money.
“It’s suggested you have learned your lesson.”
He gave Toyi a three-year sentence, suspended for for two years, ordered him to complete 10 rehabilitation days with probation and 200 hours of unpaid work.