Man caught with cocaine worth £300,000 in carrier bags is jailed

A man caught carrying £300,000 worth of cocaine in two carrier bags has been jailed for three years and four months.

Declan Price, 29, worked with drug dealer Paul Easdon, 38, who previously claimed his operation was bringing in over £4m a month.

However a police probe saw him kept under watch, and a Renault Clio was stopped in the Sandyhills area of Glasgow on 2 August 2024.

The High Court in Glasgow heard that Price, of the city's Ruchazie area, got out clutching two carrier bags and a search of the bags revealed five blocks of cocaine.

Judge Lord Arthurson said Price was making "significant personal financial gain" from his actions and a custodial sentence was inevitable.

Prosecutor Vish Kathuria told the hearing that the taped blocks of cocaine, each weighing 1kg (35oz), were found in the carrier bags when Price was searched.

Easdon's DNA was found on two of the packages discovered and the blocks had a total potential value of around £300,000.

Easdon and Price admitted to a charge of being concerned in the supply of cocaine.

Laura Radcliffe, defending Price, told sentencing that her client's offending had started during a fall-out with his uncle, who was also his employer, and he had growing debts to deal with.

Easdon, of Strathaven, Lanarkshire, was sentenced in October 2024 for his part in a huge drug trafficking operation and faces further sentencing for his latest matter next month.

The dealer was in the same criminal network as ex-Mr Scotland bodybuilder John Barry McDuff - jailed separately for seven years in 2024.

The pair had been caught after the law authorities cracked the EncroChat phone network used by several gangs to discuss crime.

Easdon used the nickname "glasgowceltic" to communicate with his associates on it.

Radcliffe said Price had temporary employment which did not work out, leaving him "in a difficult financial position with debts accruing".

She added: "He came into contact with those involved in the drug trade and the opportunity was made to him to make some money - he had not been involved in this before.

"This is something he will regret for the rest of his life and has had an effect on his family who are disappointed in him. He is disappointed that he finds himself before the court."