A dealer has avoided jail after drugs, a knuckleduster and a Taser disguised as a torch were found in his home.
Police found the weapons, £1,800-worth of cocaine, scales, small plastic bags and £400 cash when they raided Christopher Ward's address in Washington, Sunderland. A court heard that the 41-year-old's phone was seized and messages were discovered, which were indicative of him dealing the class A drug at street level.
Prosecutors said that the Taser was not capable of being used as the battery was depleted but Ward, of Park Avenue, in Washington, was arrested and charged with possession with intent to supply cocaine, possession of a weapon capable of electrical incapacitation and possession of an offensive weapon.
