Drug-smuggler sent letters to Wakefield women's prison 'drenched' in spice
A drug-smuggler used a sophisticated method of sending illegal substances into prison - by “drenching” letters in spice.
The artificial cannabinoid, which is a mind-altering chemical that gives similar yet extremely potent effects of smoking cannabis, was detected after correspondence arrived at HMP New Hall, near Wakefield.
Danny Bloom had sent letters to the jail but crucially attached a phone number and he was eventually traced. The 42-year-old was jailed at Leeds Crown Court his week after admitting a charge of conveying a forbidden article into prison.
He had persistently denied the offence and was due to stand trial on Thursday, but then changed his plea to guilty on the day it was due to start.
No mitigation was offered by his barrister James Littlehales after Judge Tom Bayliss KC warned him it had to be jail.
Judge Bayliss told Bloom: “It was pretty brazen behaviour on your part, sending letters into New Hall which were drenched with spice. It’s fairly sophisticated offending.
“The dangers that spice has are only too obvious. It’s a synthetic cannabinoid. It can cause real problems within prisons. It has to be a prison sentence.”
He gave Bloom, of no fixed address, 36 weeks’ jail. He is already serving a 28-week sentence for another matter and his latest sentence will run consecutively.
Spice refers to a series of laboratory-made chemicals that mimic the effects of cannabis. It is often coated on herbal matter and smoked, like cannabis.
The drug is known to produce much more intense and prolonged effects compared with natural cannabis. It often leaves users “zombie-like” with widespread footage often showing people unable to co-ordinate themselves, struggling to stand or walk properly from the effects.
It was made illegal in the UK 2016 and is regarded as a Class B drug, like cannabis.