A WOMAN who stored amphetamines and cannabis at her home on behalf of her brother has been spared a jail sentence.

Teesside Crown Court heard that more than £3,000 worth of drugs along with scales and £865 cash were recovered by police from the home of Maxine Harker.

Harker, 42, of Bruce Crescent, Hartlepool, said none of the items were hers and the intention had been to return them to her brother the following morning.

The mother-of-two, who was said to be of previous good character, pleaded guilty to possessing amphetamine with intent to supply, possession of the drug and the possession of cannabis on September 2 last year.

Aisha Wadoodi, for Harker, said: "She realises what a precarious position she is in with relation to a jail sentence."

She said Harker was a cannabis user and began smoking the drug as a substitute for anti-depressants as she could not sleep or relax.

Judge Les Spittle said he accepted the defendant's basis of plea in that she was effectively a "storer or custodian" of the drugs.

He said: "You were involved with a substantial quantity of illicit drugs of significant value. But you are not a dealer or deriving any financial benefit from drugs."

The judge gave Harker a 12-month sentence, suspended for two years, and said that during that time she would supervised by the probation service.

The drugs seized were ordered to be destroyed and the money forfeited.