A 25-year-old man has been jailed for drugs offences after being stopped by police in a Cheshire town.
Shaun Gargan from Pencombe Road, Huyton, pleaded guilty to two counts of possession with intent to supply Class A drugs (cocaine and heroin) and money laundering at an earlier hearing.
He appeared at Chester Crown Court today, Wednesday, July 10, and was sentenced to four years in prison.
At 9.40pm on Tuesday, June 11, two officers from Cheshire Constabulary’s Roads and Crime team were on patrol in Congleton.
They saw two men leaving a side street off West Street and walk off. Their manner led them to suspect they had bought drugs. Then two further men came off the same side of the street acting suspiciously.
One of the officers stopped to speak to the men, and one of these men - Gargan - fled along West Street. The officer gave chase and Gargan dropped a smartphone on the pavement as he ran.
The officer then managed to detain Gargan and searched him. He discovered cash and drugs in a pocket of his coat.
The coat contained £1,108 in cash and a number of bags containing Class A drugs.
(Image: Cheshire Police)
He was immediately arrested and taken into custody. Macclesfield Pro Active CID then took over the reigns and interviewed Gargan, gathered the evidence and prepared the file for CPS to authorise the charges that would put Gargan before the courts for his crimes.
A drugs expert said the 176 individual deals of crack cocaine and half an ounce of crack cocaine had the potential estimated street evaluation of £2,360 to £3,310.
The 73 individual deals of heroin and half an ounce of heroin had a potential estimated street valuation of between £1,130 and £1,730.
Superintendent Saf Ali said: “Our eagle-eyed officers are out there 24/7 patrolling the communities of Cheshire and proactively targeting people suspected of illegal activity.
“Our experienced officers know what to look out for and are ever determined to root out those intent on committing crime and swiftly take them off our streets.
“Gargan is another example of our proactive commitment to making Cheshire a no-go area for criminals.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here