A bumbling Aberdeen drug dealer was caught after setting fire to his kitchen while trying to cook up cannabis.
Jon Green, 44, was hospitalised with burns to his nose and arm as a result of the blaze at the flat at Denwood, in the Woodend area of Aberdeen.
When firefighters arrived to extinguish the flames, they noticed a strong smell of cannabis and notified the police.
Officers then found hundreds of pounds worth of the class B drug and various other paraphernalia throughout the address.
Fiscal depute Lucy Simpson told Aberdeen Sheriff Court the incident happened around 7.35pm on May 9 2021.
She said: “The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service contacted police after they had attended the locus following a kitchen fire and noted a strong smell of cannabis.
“Upon arrival, the accused was within an ambulance and was conveyed to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, having sustained minor burns to his nose and arm.
“The kitchen area of the flat had clear fire damage and there was a burned-out tray on the oven hob with a large amount of small grey pellets lying next to it.
“There was a small pressure cooker on the kitchen floor along with multiple small gas canisters.
“There was also a set of scales, a notebook, and 71.87g of cannabis within a mixing bowl on baking grease-proof paper.
“This had a value of £420.”
Evidence of dealing found
On open display in a bedroom was a large cylindrical container holding £95 of cannabis.
A similar container also contained cannabis remnants and an air filtration unit.
Inside a second bedroom, officers noted two tubes feeding into the wardrobe and up into the loft space.
In the living room, the police found various drug paraphernalia including grinders and a bong, as well as a bag containing 685.5g of “poor quality” cannabis “trim” worth £650.
The court heard “trim” referred to leftover plant material which could be used for making cannabis oil, cooking with or smoking.
Green’s mobile phone was seized and found to contain messages indicative of dealing to friends between May 5 and 9 2021.
Green, of Denwood, Aberdeen, pled guilty to being concerned in the supply of cannabis.
Dealer was trying to extract THC when fire broke out
Defence agent Neil McRobert said his client suffered a back injury when he was just 18 and started using cannabis as pain relief.
He then went on to work in the oil industry for 14 years before losing his job in the pandemic when “debts began to mount”.
Mr McRobert explained Green was extracting the THC from the “trim” and using it for edibles and vapes.
Green was also selling the substances to friends and associates to make money.
However, the solicitor said Green had since reduced and ultimately ceased his cannabis use.
Sheriff Andrew Miller ordered Green to complete 150 hours of unpaid work.
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