Man jailed over £20,000 drugs
A Horsham man who was caught twice by police with more than £20,000 worth of drugs has been jailed for three years.
Police say that Kyle Searle, 31, unemployed, of Peary Close, Horsham, was convicted of six offences in relation to two separate incidents in the town.
Officers were on patrol on March 21 2019 when they saw Searle carry out a suspected drugs deal in an alleyway between Park Way and Park Place. Police went to his home and arrested him on suspicion of possession with intent to supply a Class B drug - cannabis. However, say police, a search of the property uncovered a variety of Class A drugs, as well as paraphernalia linked to drugs supply.
He wasfurther arrested on suspicion of possession with intent to supply a Class A drug - cocaine - possession of a Class A drug - MDMA - and possession of a Class B drug - Amphetamine. Intotal, drugs with an estimated street value of between £16,000 and £17,450 were seized from the property.
Searle pleaded guilty to all four offences and was sentenced to a total of 31 months’ imprisonment when he appeared at Lewes Crown Court on November 26.
While he had been on court bail for these offences, say police, Searle was arrested again on June 12 2020 after being seen carrying out a suspected drugs deal in a car park off St Marks Lane, Horsham. He was searched and a bag of white powder and £60 in cash was found on him.
Another search of his home found cannabis and cocaine with an estimated street value of between £4,640 and £5,460, say police.
He was arrested and charged with two additional offences of possession with intent to supply cocaine and possession with intent to supply cannabis.
He was sentenced to five months’ imprisonment for these offences, to run consecutively to the previous sentence, giving a total of 36 months in prison.
Detective Police Constable Stuart Macpherson, one of the investigating officers on the case, said: “Kyle Searle clearly thought the law didn’t apply to him, this being evidenced by the large quantities of drugs he was in possession of when he was first arrested.
“To then commit the same offence again while on court bail further shows his lack of respect for the court system.
“Sussex Police is committed to keeping our communities safe and illegal drugs have no place in our society. Through proactive policing and secondary investigation, Searle has been caught not once, but twice in little over a year.
“Not only has he now received a lengthy custodial sentence, but he also forfeited more than £20,000 worth of Class A and Class B drugs and more than £2,600 in cash which he had accrued from his illegal activity.
“I hope this will serve as a clear message to others who believe they are above the law; if you are involved with drugs, you will be caught and you can expect stiff penalties to be issued by the courts.”