A drug dealer who was found hiding in a cupboard at his former partner’s house also had more than £5,000 of cannabis in his possession.
Lewis Henderson was in breach of a court order when he was found hiding inside his ex-girlfriend’s bedroom cupboard at a property in Turriff in November last year.
When police brought the 25-year-old out and searched him, they discovered he had hundreds of pounds in cash in his pocket.
A further search of his bag revealed it contained more than £5,000 of cannabis, Aberdeen Sheriff Court was told.
‘Large quantity of green herbal substance’
Fiscal depute Alan Townsend stated that on November 6 2024, the police were informed that Henderson had breached his non-harassment order in relation to his former partner.
At around 10.30am the following day, police attended an address in Turriff to check on Henderson’s ex-girlfriend, who didn’t answer the door.
A family friend later arrived and allowed the police entry to the property, and Henderson’s former partner then came to the door and spoke with them.
Police searched the premises and found Henderson hiding within a cupboard in the master bedroom.
They checked his clothing and found £500 in his pocket. They then checked his bag, where they found a “large quantity of green herbal substance”, the fiscal depute said.
Dozens of self-seal bags were found within the bag, which was later deemed to be cannabis.
A further search of the property was carried out and various drug paraphernalia was found.
The maximum street value of cannabis seized was more than £5,000, Mr Townsend said.
In the dock, Henderson pleaded guilty to one count of being concerned in the supply of cannabis and a second charge of breaching a non-harassment order.
Accused ‘struggled’ to reintegrate
Defence solicitor Alannah Comerford told the court that her client had given the explanation that he and his former partner have a child together, and that’s why he was there.
“I have made it clear to him that it’s a court order and that it’s not up to them as to whether they comply,” the solicitor said.
Ms Comerford added that Henderson had “struggled” to integrate properly back into society following his release from prison and “unfortunately fell back into” drug dealing.
“He slipped back into that lifestyle, but he doesn’t want to live like that anymore – he wants to make significant efforts to live a positive lifestyle.”
Sheriff William Summers described Henderson’s position as “precarious” due to his previous convictions and the fact that he had previously served a prison sentence.
Sentencing him to an alternative to a period in custody, Sheriff Summers warned Henderson that if he didn’t comply, it would be a “virtual certainty” that a prison sentence would follow.
He made Henderson, of Gordon Road, Turriff, subject to a community payback order with two years supervision and ordered him to carry out 150 hours of unpaid work.
The sheriff also made Henderson subject to a restriction of liberty order for six months.
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