Cocaine courier jailed for 25 months after being caught with more than £21,000 of the drug in Inverness
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An Inverness woman was jailed for ferrying cocaine as a court heard about "pressure" being placed on her to act as a courier.
Joyce Burnside (62) of Anderson Street, Inverness, was caught with more than £21,000 worth of the class A drug on June 11 last year.
Sentence had been deferred for reports but Burnside had already been warned at Inverness Sheriff Court that she was facing a term of imprisonment before reappearing for sentencing.
Previously depute fiscal Karen Aitken told the court that police had received intelligence that a car being driven by Burnside was being used to transport drugs.
It was stopped and officers found a bag of white powder on the front passenger seat which was later confirmed to be 492g of a cocaine and paracetamol mix.
Burnside admitted possession with intent to supply.
Solicitor Clare Russell said that Burnside accepted it was an offence where she would face custody.
However she also asked the court to take account of the fact that she had been of good behaviour for 18 years.
Ms Russell said Burnside, who had been remanded in connection with the offence, did not keep good health, a situation compounded by the loss of her daughter.
“She has first-hand experience of drug misuse, blames herself for her daughter’s death and is aware of the impact it can have on the community,” she said.
“She has used cannabis in the past but has ceased since her daughter’s passing.”
She said Burnside became involved in offending again through a family member.
“She was put under a degree of pressure by a family member who is no stranger to this court,” she said. “It is an isolated incident and she is addressing her behaviour in custody.”
She said she had being acting as a drugs courier on a single date.
Sheriff Chris Dickson told Burnside she had been found with a substantial amount of a Class A drug and a custodial sentence was the only appropriate disposal.
