Drug dealer, 27, found with 'stun gun' in his house

A drug dealer who was found with more than £30,000 of cocaine for street dealing and a 'Taser' has been jailed. Adil Rafiq was stopped by police in Bolton town centre on July 10 this year for being drunk and disorderly, but after a search of him found cocaine and a large amount of cash, officers decided to search his home where more drugs, cash, and a 'stun gun' were found.

Bolton Crown Court heard that Rafiq had been struggling with drug and alcohol abuse in the months leading up to his arrest. This led to him first of all being paid to store drugs in his house on Bradford Road, Bolton, before being paid to deal on the streets.

A search of his house found a 1kg block of cocaine in the 27-year-old's bedroom, worth £28,000, with other snap bags of the drug found taking the total to £30,875 that he had. In the search police also found a mobile phone with messages relating to drug dealing on and an 'electric stun device', prosecutor Simon Barrett told the hearing.

Defending Rafiq, Andrew Scott, said he pleaded guilty to both possession of cocaine with the intent to supply and possession of a prohibited weapon. "He accepts responsibility for his behaviour," he added, "he claims he was going through a difficult period in his life and drank alcohol and used cocaine as a coping mechanism and became dependant."

Mr Scott said he had initially been "paid a wage" for holding the drugs which then led to "dealing on the streets". He also admitted that the stun gun, which wasn't in 'working order', was kept and used in relation to the drug dealing.

Rafiq is said to have been addressing his addictions while he has been in custody, adopting a "positive attitude" in his time in prison so far. "He is determined to stay drug free and alcohol free upon his release," Mr Scott added, "he still has time to turn his life around and have a positive future, he has a supportive family, a glimmer of hope, to take stock of his life and address his addictions and realise his full potential."

Rafiq was sentenced to six years in jail by Judge Martin Walsh. He said: "You were arrested on July 10 this year in Bolton town centre while drunk and disorderly and were found in possession of seven wraps of cocaine with a large amount of cash. A search then took place at your home address where a substantial quantity of cocaine and more cash were recovered. A bag containing 1kg of cocaine was also found. The purity was very high and was worth over £30,000."

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