A trio of hard drug pushers have been put behind bars after they were caught with dozens of heroin wraps stashed away in their BMW.
Tracie Barnes and Anthony Griffin were involved in a scheme to supply the deadly substances to addicts in Barrow, Cumbria.
It wasn't until cops spotted 62-year-old Griffin "acting suspiciously" before getting behind the wheel that they pounced and discovered the massive haul of narcotics.
Police pulled the BMW over and discovered the drugs - 79 wraps of heroin and a wrap of crack inside the footwell of the vehicle.
There was also cannabis, a knife, and £1,500 cash hidden in the door pocket.
In total 68.6 grams of class A drugs with an estimated street value of between £3,000 and £6,000 were discovered. A second passenger in the BMW, Sean Burton, 19, of Wolverhampton, was also arrested.
Two phones were also seized from Burton. Police found they used almost exclusively to send out bulk messages advertising the sale of heroin and crack cocaine. A phone recovered from Barnes showed messages between the three arranging the trip to Barrow, for which Griffin would be paid £100 as driver, reports the Manchester Evening News.
A phone recovered from Griffin showed he had travelled multiple times to Wolverhampton to collect Burton and take him to Liverpool, for which he was paid £250 per trip. It also showed he was purchasing crack cocaine for Barnes and allowing Burton to stay over at his home address.
Barnes, 42, of Thistleton Road, Bolton, admitted two counts of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs and was sentenced to 25 months in prison at Preston Crown Court. Griffin, 62, of Duncombe Road, Bolton, admitted two counts of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs and two counts of possession with intent to supply Class A drugs and was sentenced to 22 months in prison.
Burton, 19, of Leasowes Drive, Wolverhampton admitted two counts of possession with intent to supply Class A drugs and possession of a knife. He was sentenced to two years in prison.
A spokesperson for South Cumbria Community Serious & Organised Crime Unit said: "The actions of the three defendants were brought to light by a quick-thinking officer who identified reasons to be suspicious and was able to stop the vehicle containing a significant amount of Class A drugs and money inside.
“Class A drug use wrecks communities and Cumbria Police is committed to stopping and bringing to justice those people who seek to come to the county to prey on vulnerable addicts."
