A TEENAGER who claimed he had been looking after a stash of ecstasy and cocaine for a dealer he owed money has been locked up for two years.

Durham Crown Court was told 19-year-old Luke Ramage had admitted charges of possessing Class A drugs on the basis that he was minding it for a dealer.

Sentencing him to be detained in a young offenders' institution, Judge Peter Armstrong, said it was sad to see someone of his age with previous good character in the dock facing this serious matter. And he was giving credit to him for his guilty plea.

But, Judge Armstrong said: "Those who mind drugs for dealers are contributing to the chain of the distribution of 'A' Class drugs, which means the real villains are not brought to book."

Ramage, who admitted two charges of possessing Class A drugs with intent to supply and one of possessing a Class C drug with intent to supply.

Stephen Orange, prosecuting, said the drugs were found during the execution of a search warrant of Ramage's home in Eastfields, Stanley, on September 18, last year.

Police confiscated 1,784 ecstasy tablets, 40.92g of cocaine and 19 tablets of methandienone hidden in various places in the house - including in a safe in his ten-year-old sister's bedroom.

Mr Orange said the cocaine had a purity of 20 per cent which could have been further cut to ten per cent purity to increase its value to potentially £9,000 on the street.

Ramage admitted 19 methandienone tablets (a steroid used in bodybuilding) and ten ecstasy tables were for his own use - but the rest belonged to an unnamed dealer.

Sean Routledge, mitigating, said Ramage had been a hard worker at school and had reached level two of a plumbing apprenticeship, when he fell into drug abuse.

His mother had noticed he was losing weight and, try as she may, she was not able to stop him from taking drugs.

He added Ramage spent all his hard-earned money to support his drug habit.

Mr Routledge said: "He was 18 at the time of his offence. He developed a drug problem that he could not afford to pay.

"This young man fell into debt with his supplier in September last year."

Mr Routledge said he had been exploited by more 'sophisticated' offenders.