Jail for drug dealer found with cocaine wraps

Kyle Blades-Wilkinson was stopped by officers on Scarborough's Barrowcliff estate in August, police say

A drug dealer from Scarborough has been jailed after admitting possessing cocaine with intent to supply.

Kyle Blades-Wilkinson, 23, was found to be in possession of wraps of cocaine and a "burner" phone after being stopped by officers on the town's Barrowcliff estate on 1 August, police said.

An analysis of the phone revealed Blades-Wilkinson, of Herdborough Road in Scarborough, had been calling known Class A drug users offering to sell cocaine.

At York Crown Court on Monday, he was jailed for five years and eight months after pleading guilty to possession with intent to supply cocaine and possession of Class C drug Pregabalin.

According to North Yorkshire Police, Blades-Wilkinson, who was already on licence for previous drug supply offences, was stopped by officers as part of the Clear, Hold, Build project on the Barrowcliff estate.

The Home Office initiative uses a combination of high-visibility policing and covert tactics in a bid to protect communities and disrupt organised crime.

Det Con Darrel Temple, who led the investigation, said: “Organised criminals like Blades-Wilkinson are exactly the type of offender the Clear, Hold, Build project is targeting on the Barrowcliff estate."

He added that police were doing "everything in our power to tackle harmful criminal activity to give residents the chance to flourish with help from a range of community partners".

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