An Aberdeen drug dealer was snared by a sniffer dog that found his special delivery parcel containing £500,000 of cocaine at a Royal Mail sorting office.
Mark Longmuir, 47, was caught out by a police search of the postal facility in Mastrick on October 11 2023.
The High Court in Edinburgh heard the canine, who wasn’t named, detected the large quantity of drugs in a special delivery package that was addressed to Longmuir.
The court was told how two packs which contained 999g and 992g of cocaine were seized during the discovery.
Prosecutor Brian Gill KC told the judge Lord Lake: “In the morning of October 11 2023, police officers were conducting a search of the Royal Mail Mastrick sorting office in Aberdeen.
Aberdeen cocaine dealer Mark Longmuir had 30 previous convictions
“A drug dog identified a special delivery bag. The bag indicated a special delivery. It was addressed to Mark Longmuir of Tay Road in Aberdeen.
“The officer suspected it contained controlled drugs and took possession of it.”
Mr Gill said specialist officers then found two packages that contained cocaine which have could netted sellers almost £500,000 on the streets.
The story emerged after Longmuir, of Aberdeen, pleaded guilty to a single charge of being concerned in the supply of cocaine.
Mr Gill told the court that the accused had 30 previous convictions and had previously served a six-year jail term for drug offences which had been imposed upon him at Liverpool Crown Court.
The previous trial heard how Longmuir was a key member of the feared Baker’s Green Boys crime clan that flooded the north-east’s streets with millions of pounds of drugs.
He was a drugs courier who regularly drove from Liverpool to the Granite City with consignments of heroin and cocaine.
The gang members were sentenced to a total of 300 years of jail time in December 2010.
During Longmuir’s latest court appearance for sentencing at the High Court in Edinburgh on Wednesday, the prosecutor revealed that detectives had seized Longmuir’s mobile phone, finding a message on it that detailed the tracking number for the package.
He was charged with drug offences soon afterward.
Defence advocate Kenneth Cloggie told Lord Lake that his client was paid £200 to receive the drugs at his home in the Granite City.
Mr Cloggie added: “He is addicted to Valium. He would take 20 Valium tablets a day. He has told me that he took part in this scheme in the expectation of receiving more Valium tablets.”
Mr Cloggie asked Lord Lake to exercise leniency with his client and said that the evidence showed that he didn’t have a major role in drug dealing.
Mr Cloggie added: “He has been exploited by those further up the chain.”
More jail time for Mark Longmuir after £500k cocaine haul uncovered at Aberdeen Royal Mail office
Passing sentence, Lord Lake told Longmuir that if he hadn’t pleaded guilty, he would have received six years and six months for the crime.
Lord Lake told him that since he pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity, he would receive a discount and would serve four years and eight months in prison.
He added: “The harm caused to the community by drugs is well known to this court. The quantity of drugs that were seized could have caused substantial harm to the community.
“I have taken account of your criminal record. The sentence will be one of four years and eight months.”
As he was being led away, Longmuir commented on his sentence, telling security guards in the courtroom: “F****** hell man”.
For all the latest court cases in Aberdeen as well as crime and breaking incidents, join our Facebook group.