Drug dealing duo caught in car jailed

Brian Quinn and Paul Wise were caught with a haul of Class A drugs

Two drug dealers who were caught with a haul of Class A drugs in a car have been jailed.

Police spotted Brian Quinn and Paul Wise acting suspiciously in a black Honda in Gateshead on 31 May last year, Newcastle Crown Court heard.

They were found with cocaine, crack cocaine and heroin worth almost £1,800 and more than £2,000 in cash.

Quinn, 30, was jailed for four years after admitting being concerned in the supply of Class A drugs, and Wise, 32, was jailed for two years and eight months after admitting possessing Class A drugs with intent to supply.

The court heard Wise, of Bond Dene West in Gateshead, was seen parking the car outside an address in the town on 31 May.

Quinn, of Broomfield Avenue in Wallsend, then walked from the house to the car and the men were seen passing items between each other, prosecutors said.

Officers intervened and found packages of cocaine, crack cocaine and heroin worth up to £1,780 and a stack of £10 and £20 notes totalling £2,050.

The court heard Wise was selling drugs for Quinn, who had a previous conviction for drug dealing, and police had seen Wise collecting more product and dropping off his proceeds.

Judge Tim Gittins said both men clearly expected to make a "financial gain".

He warned Quinn that a third conviction for drug dealing in the future would result in an even longer prison sentence and urged him "for the sake of [his] family" to "step away from being involved in drugs now".

Judge Gittins said Wise had started selling to pay off his own drugs debt.

"You are a prime example of how drugs take over people's lives," Judge Gittins told Wise, adding: "They cause you misery and affect the lives of those around you who care for you."