Man’s inheritance helped buy drugs

Adrug dealer who inherited £250,000 from his father spent about £90,000 on crack cocaine as part of a criminal enterprise to flood the north- east with the substance.

Gary Blanchett was jailed for nearly three years when he appeared at Aberdeen Sheriff Court yesterday.

T he cour t heard the 51-year-old had lived with his father in the months before his death.

His father was said to h av e been a “positive influence” on Blanchett, who went off the rails when he died in 2018 and became involved with drugs.

After inheriting £250,000 he spent some on a house and an estimated £90,000 on class A substances to be sold by others from his flat in Ruthrieston Circle while he stayed in his father’s home.

Defence lawyer John Hardie said Blanche tt found himself with “so much money he didn’ t know what to do with it”, so “price wasn’ t an issue” when it came to buying the illegal substance.

Blanchett came to the attention of the police after he began allowing another man to stay at his flat, from where the drugs were sold.

Officers searched the flat that September and seized the substances.

Police recovered almost £4,000 of cocaine – some of which Blanchett admitted to being concerned in supplying.

Mr Hardie said his client recognised he was at “significant ” risk of a custodial sentence and arrived at court fearing the worst. Blanchett was said to have spent most of his time with his father, who had been a “positive influence in his life” until he died, leaving him without sufficient support to stay on the right side of the law.

Mr Hardie said: “He was buying a great deal of crack cocaine and those who he was buying it from became aware that he had the money to buy it.

“He was asked if someone could use his flat as a favour to a friend – that person then became of interest to the police.”

Mr Hardie said: “Price wasn’t an issue for him. He had so much money he didn’t know what to do with it.”

The court heard Blanchett had suffered health issues all his life and had struggled with drug addiction in the past.

His solicitor pointed out that a psychiatric report had highlighted he was “susceptible to suggestion”, among other things.

Sheriff Graham Buchanan noted Blanchett had a similar conviction for dealing drugs on his record from 30 months earlier.

He said: “Obviously I have listened to what has been said on your behalf by Mr Hardie.

“And I do recognise that you do have certain difficulties, that is beyond dispute.

“Yo u r guilty plea recognises that you played a role in supplying drugs, the quantity of which found by the police had a maximum street value of almost £4,000.”

Blanchett was sentenced to 35 months behind bars.