Man jailed for importing heroin hidden inside a wax candle

Mark Roberts was given an eight years and 10 month sentence at Douglas Courthouse

A drug dealer who had heroin hidden inside a wax candle posted to him has been jailed for eight years and 10 months.

Mark Roberts, 48, was arrested after the parcel addressed to him at his landlord's address in Ramsey was intercepted at the post office in 2021.

Douglas Courthouse heard Roberts was found to have been supplying the drug for about two years.

Deemster Graeme Cook said he had an "appalling record" of drugs offences.

The court heard the owner of the apartment building in North Shore Road where Roberts lived had become suspicious after being asked if he could have a parcel sent to the man's apartment rather than his own because it was a surprise gift for his girlfriend.

The landlord agreed, but asked postal staff to hold any items sent to his address and reported the conversation to the police.

'Parasite life'

The parcel was intercepted on 21 July 2021 and when opened it was found to contain four wraps of heroin with a street value of between £15,000 and £30,000 encased within a wax candle.

Messages on Roberts' mobile phone showed he had been dealing the drug for more than two years.

The court heard Roberts had a lifetime drug dependency which began when he was 17 and had convictions for drugs offences dating back to 1995.

He pleaded guilty to importing heroin to the island and supplying the drug.

Deemster Cook said the landlord had done a great "civic duty" by enabling a "huge amount of heroin" to be intercepted.

The deemster said Roberts was "a man who's got his hands dirty" by dealing heroin to feed people's addictions as well as his own.

Jailing the 48-year-old he said: "You've led a parasite life, living off other people's misery."

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