A young dad who thought it was better to deal drugs than steal to fund his habit is counting the cost of his decision in prison today.
Michael David Rooks was caught with 6.6g of cocaine, worth just over £270, and almost 100g of amphetamine, worth £995, when police searched his home on Maple Street, off Borough Road in central Middlesbrough.
They seized the drugs from a kitchen cupboard and a living room sofa cushion, Teesside Crown Court heard today.
Prosecutor Paul Lee said officers found a dealer’s list referring to “wizz” and “white flake” alongside names, quantities and figures.
Digital scales carrying traces of cocaine and £85 cash were also found in the raid on January 31 last year.
Rooks, 23, admitted possession of Class A and B drugs with intent to supply.
With only one previous conviction for drunk and disorderly behaviour, he faced a prison sentence of up to seven years.
Scott Taylor, defending, said: “He’s clearly someone who’s got himself dragged into a situation beyond what he was expecting.
“He indicates to me he only recently became involved in the supply of drugs, and most of it was to fund his own drug misuse.
“Bizarrely enough, he states that he thought it would be better to sell drugs and earn money to buy his own drugs than to commit offences of theft to fund his habit, which was beginning to spiral beyond what he could afford from money from friends and family.
“For sentencing reasons, not the great decision he’s ever made, perhaps showing his naivety in this area.”
Mr Taylor said Rooks was supplying to friends and people he knew rather than randomly on the streets.
He referred to Rooks’ increased cannabis use since his mother’s death three years ago, but said Rooks did not blame his lifestyle on anything.
The judge, Recorder Patrick Palmer, said he was concerned that a pre-sentence report showed Rook had “little motivation to change” and had tried to take his own life.
He jailed Rooks for three-and-a-half years.
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