Ex-para behind bars after £15k drug haul COURT: Man left country shortly before trial but was arrested on return

A former paratrooper, who was shot in the line of duty in Afghanistan, is behind bars after being caught with nearly £15,000 worth of cocaine.

Christopher Lawson was arrested at the airport when he returned to the United Kingdom after spending several years working as a security officer in the Middle East.

Lawson had been caught with the Class A drugs and a knife almost four years ago but he fled Scotland shortly before his trial was due to start.

The case was delayed by his disappearance but he was taken into custody when he returned and has now admitted three charges.

He admitted being concerned in the supply of cocaine on the southbound carriageway of the A92 near the Melville Lodges roundabout in Fife on December 4 2016.

Lawson, who appeared via video link at Dundee Sheriff Court, also admitted being in possession of a knife when his Audi S5 was stopped by police.

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What was found to be associated with you had a potential street value approaching £15,000. SHERIFF RICHARD MACFARLANE

Lawson, 36, a prisoner at Perth, was remanded in custody by Sheriff Richard MacFarlane, who called for social work reports to be prepared before sentencing.

Solicitor Paul Parker-Smith, defending, said: “He served in the Parachute Regiment. He came out of the service in 2011, having been shot in the line of duty in Afghanistan.

“He went to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham for rehab and physio. He then started to work in private security in the Middle East.

“He came back to the UK in 2016, having saved money intending to set up a gym, but that did not come to pass. He started drinking and taking recreational drugs and had no structure to his life.”

Sheriff MacFarlane said: “From the narrative written for me, it is suggested that what was found to be associated with you had a potential street value approaching £15,000.

“You accept you had a knife in your possession and you accept you were concerned in the supply of cocaine.

“Taking the charges together there is a very real possibility of a custodial sentence. You have not previously served a custodial sentence and all options require to be investigated.”

He imposed an interim driving ban and refused bail, despite Lawson, from Dundee, offering to surrender his passport to the court.