Brierley Hill drug dealer, 64, jailed over £34,500 drugs haul

Police found £34,500 worth of skunk and cannabis resin at the home of Robert Whitelaw, Wolverhampton Crown Court heard.

The haul was discovered in carrier bags and cling film pouches along with a small amount of cocaine for personal use, revealed Miss Sharonjit Bahia.

Officers also recovered £15,000 cash at the address in Mill Street, Brierley Hill during the raid in July last year.

Miss Bahia explained: "The defendant escorted the officers executing the search warrant to where the cannabis and cocaine were stored."

Whitelaw had seven previous convictions involving 16 different offences, several of which were for drug dealing. These included one for which he was jailed for six years, the court was told.

He had also been locked up for two years in France for importing and possessing drugs in Lille in 1995, it was said.

Mr John Evans, defending, said: "He is a man with a significant number of health problems but accepts that he intended to sell the drugs in bulk for a profit."

Whitelaw pleaded guilty to possessing cannabis with intent to supply and possession of cocaine. He was sent to prison by Judge Robin Onions who told him:

"You ran into financial difficulties last year and saw this supply of cannabis as a way of solving them. You went into this with your eyes open and your past experiences would have told you what would happen if you were caught. You were motivated purely by financial gain."

A Proceeds of Crime case is likely to be started against Whitelaw later this year in a bid to seize the cash found at his house during the search.