Pair who tried to take drugs into festival avoid being locked up

Two young men narrowly avoided being put behind bars after their doomed efforts to take drugs into T in the Park.

Perth Sheriff Court heard that Fifer Ryan Marshall “drew straws” with pals to see which of them would attempt to smuggle a £285 haul of ecstasy tablets into the event on the Strathallan Estate.

The 19-year-old, of Ewing Street in Lochgelly, was the loser and tried to stroll straight through security checks with the 95 tablets in a large black holdall.

It emerged that he failed to make the slightest attempt to conceal the drugs, which were found sitting on top of clothes the moment staff opened his bag to carry out a search.

That same day, apprentice electrician James Mullholland attempted to slip into the festival with £400 of cocaine, again to share out with friends.

He was stopped as he approached a security station, with stewards finding eight individual wraps of the class A drug stashed in a bag.

Sheriff Gillian Wade told the two men they had been guilty of stupidity that put their liberty at risk.

She said the threat of prison was even more real for Mulholland, who already had a conviction for possession of drugs.

Marshall admitted being in possession of ecstasy at the festival on July 8 and was made subject to a community payback order making him subject to 12 months’ supervision and requiring him to undertake 225 hours of unpaid work.

Mulholland, 19, of Elm Drive in Glasgow, admitted being in possession of cocaine with intent to supply to others and was made subject to a similar order requiring him to carry out 240 hours of unpaid work.