A MAN found with heroin-tainted money he claimed came from the sale of a car for a professional football player has today been jailed.
Christopher Moloney was found with more than £4,300 when he was stopped by police driving a suspicious vehicle in December 2005.
Tests showed the money was contaminated with unusually high quantities of heroin.
Moloney, 21, of Kesteven Road, Middlesbrough, was found guilty of possessing criminal property at an earlier trial.
During the hearing the defendant claimed the money came from the sale of a vehicle on behalf of a Darlington Football Club player.
He refused to name the player.
At Teesside Crown Court, Richard Bennett, defending, said his client's story was clearly "nonsense".
He said: "I submit that this man is a pawn in a bigger operation, rather than a player or a motivator."
Judge Tony Briggs sentenced Moloney to nine months in prison.
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