Inverness man avoids prison following £12,000 cocaine seizure
Register for free to read more of the latest local news. It's easy and will only take a moment.
AN Inverness man found in possession of more than £12,000 worth of cocaine has narrowly avoided a jail sentence at the city’s sheriff court.
First offender Darren Mackay, of Craigard Terrace, was seen by drug enforcement officers with a suspected dealer who handed him a package.
Thirty-year-old Mack-ay then drove off but was stopped by officers who found 229.29 grams of cocaine in his vehicle.
It was 83 per cent purity, which is more than twice the normal level for the Highlands and Islands, fiscal depute Robert Weir told the court.
The drug was valued at between £8100 and £12,480.
Mackay had admitted on January 12 last year to being concerned in the supply of cocaine and his bail was continued until last Friday for background reports to be obtained.
Solicitor Shahid Latif said he accepted the threshold for the imposition of a custodial sentence had been met in the case.
But he said the question was if there were sufficient mitigating factors to tip the balance against custody.
Mr Latif said Mackay was not the suspect under police surveillance and he only had the drugs in his possession for a very short period.
He said it was acknowledged that Mack-ay had collected the package but it was not known what he was going to do with it.
He said: “It’s clear he played a lesser role and got caught up in something that frankly was not of his making.”
Sheriff Fleetwood said he acknowledged that the surveillance was directed at another individual and when Mackay arrived they weren’t expecting him.
Mr Latif said it was a gross error of judgment on Mackay’s part and the author of the report regarded him at a low risk of re-offending.
“He’s been naive and it’s out of character,” said Mr Latif.
Sheriff Fleetwood said: “I have always taken the view if I hesitate to send someone to jail I shouldn’t and that’s exactly what I’m going to do in your case.”
He ordered Mackay to carry out 300 hours of unpaid work.
