Cocaine dealer found to have drugs in his underwear during Leeds stop and search
He avoids jail because he was “being taken advantage of”
A dealer caught stashing hundreds of pounds of drugs in his pants has been spared immediate custody.
Ryan Mitchell, 28, was found with multiple wraps of cocaine which he initially said was for personal use, Leeds Crown Court heard.
But after messages on his phone related to dealing were found, he admitted dealing in Class A drugs.
Prosecutor Carmel Pearson said that police had pulled over a Vauxhall Astra driven by Mitchell on Old Lane in Beeston, two days before Christmas in 2024.
He had two passengers with him, and all three were searched. Only Mitchell was found carrying drugs, four grammes of cocaine in his underwear with a value of around £330.
The mobile phone was analysed and Mitchell, of Cardinal Road, Beeston, also tested positive for cocaine.
No mitigation was offered after the judge said he would not lock him up, but a probation report read to the court suggested Mitchell was no longer using drugs himself and was a carer for his partner who has three children.
Judge Christopher Batty said that Mitchell had been “manipulated and used”, and alluded to physical issues that he had suffered throughout his life, although they were not disclosed to the court.
Judge Batty told him: “Being involved in Class A drugs should mean you go straight to custody, and most people do.
“You were rather put upon to be involved in this. You have your own physical issues. Throughout the years people have taken advantage of you, that brings the sentence down.”
He gave him a 22-month jail sentence, suspended for 12 months, and ordered he complete 15 rehabilitation days with probation.