A painter and decorator who was caught with drugs worth more than £10,000 has escaped a stint in prison.
Pawel Golinski, 38, was stopped by police while driving through Aberdeenshire because he had an expired MOT certificate.
Aberdeen Sheriff Court heard how a search of Golinski’s blue Vauxhall produced one bag of cocaine worth a maximum street value of £1,700 and another bag of cannabis worth an estimated £9,000.
The dad-of-one pleaded guilty to two charges of being concerned in the supply of cocaine and cannabis while on the A96 between Blackburn and Kintore.
Cops found cocaine in same TK Maxx bag containing cannabis
Fiscal depute Alan Townsend said Golinski had told police he was only an “occasional user of cocaine and cannabis” and had been “returning” the drugs to a friend.
He told the court that during a search of Golinski’s car police found a red TK Maxx carrier bag in the vehicle’s footwell and within that was a vacuum type bag containing the cannabis.
When the bag was further searched by cops another bag containing white substance was found inside.
He is a ‘changed man’
Defence agent Peter Keene told the court that his client did have the drugs in his possession, but claimed they were purchased for someone else.
He said: “He had been invited to obtain the drugs and was given a kitty and told to buy them on behalf of his friends.
“He acquired the cannabis for £2,000 and the cocaine for £1,000 and it’s known that if it’s broken down into street deals then the opportunity for profit is huge – but he is not that kind of dealer.
“He is a changed man and no longer dabbles in drugs or hangs around with those friends.”
Sheriff Morag McLaughin told the 38-year old that, despite the offences meeting the threshold for a custodial sentence she had taken into account that he had no previous convictions.
As an alternative to a prison sentence, Sheriff McLaughlin sentenced Golinski, of Gairsay Drive, Aberdeen, to a restriction of liberty order lasting 32 weeks and 225 hours of unpaid work in the community.
For all the latest court cases in Aberdeen, as well as the latest crime and breaking incidents, join our new Facebook group HERE.
