POLICE attending another incident came across a man with a lump of cocaine in his pocket while apparently under the influence of drink and drugs, a court heard.

Gary Cowie was said, by his barrister, Lewis Kerr, to have been in the “wrong place at the wrong time”, when officers spotted him and another man sitting on a wall near Acre Rigg Social Club, in Peterlee, at 1.10am on February 26, last year.

Durham Crown Court heard that on being searched police not only found the lump of cocaine in a small bag in Cowie’s front pocket, but they also seized several smaller lumps from his back pocket, loose among some change.

Martin Towers, prosecuting, said £172 and a mobile phone were also confiscated from Cowie, with the cocaine weighing a total of 20.4g, with, “an extremely high purity”, of 95-per cent.

Mr Towers said a drug expert put the average purity for high-quality cocaine at 68-pc.

“It is said the higher the purity the nearer to the original source the drug is likely to be.”

Mr Towers said the cocaine’s sale value was estimated between £1,000 and £1,600.

Text messages found on Cowie’s phone were indicative of drug supply, with requests from would-be purchasers and discussions about amounts owed.

The 29-year-old defendant, of Hale Rise, Peterlee, previously denied possessing the class A drug with intent to supply, but, with the trial looming, appeared back in court to change his plea to guilty.

Lewis Kerr, mitigating, said Cowie, a joiner, is of otherwise good character.

Mr Kerr said Cowie’s life spiralled into heavy drink and drug use after a series of family bereavements.

He said as the defendant was in work, he bought the drug and sold some among a small circle of fellow users.

Jailing him for two-and-a-half years, Recorder Neil Barker also set a proceeds of crime timetable, to culminate in a confiscation hearing at the court on June 29.