The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Court is told of joiner’s £620,000 drug profit
JUSTICE: Crown launches proceeds of crime action against Perth man
A Perth man caught adulterating cocaine in a kitchen drug factory made more than £620,000 from dealing the drug, prosecutors claim.
Dean Moir, 46, was said to be using his joinery business as cover to make more than £100,000 per year from preparing and dealing cocaine around Perthshire.
The Crown has launched a proceeds of crime action against Moir to reclaim money they believe he earned from the illicit trade.
In the action at Perth Sheriff Court, prosecutors allege Moir profited by £620,371 in six years.
They are immediately claiming the £372,221 which they believe is “recoverable” from Moir’s estate, understood to include a number of properties.
Solicitor David Holmes, defending, said it was a “complex” matter which involved “properties in his name which were purchased prior to 2000”.
Sheriff William Wood continued the case for two months to allow for a forensic accountancy report to be produced.
Moir is serving three years in jail, imposed earlier this year when he admitted being concerned in the supply of cocaine.
Moir and Paul Hannigan, 48, were caught cutting the Class A drug with caffeine and other substances to maximise their profits.
The raid was carried out at fellow joiner Hannigan’s home and he was also jailed for three years on the same charge.
Sheriff William Wood said: “Drugs are a scourge on our society. They break up families and break up homes and they cause substantial misery.
“You were both involved in cutting the drug with other substances, either to make it more usable or improve profits.
“It wasn’t a case of simply storing or bagging it. You were involved in creating the product which ends up on the streets.
“This is a serious charge.
“It is a significant and sophisticated part of the overall operation.”
Moir, Almond Gardens, and Hannigan, Ballantine Place, both Perth, admitted being concerned in the supply of cocaine on October 26 last year.
The court heard how the selfemployed joiner threw a frying pan of cocaine into a sink when police raided his drugs factory.
Mr Holmes said: “This was not a frying pan that was hot or used.
“It is something of a red herring. “It just seems to have been used as a container.”
He told the court Moir could earn a “substantial income” with his joinery business and was a family man with a good work ethic.