Taxi driver caught with cocaine in car jailedhttps://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy5elqkyxnyoA taxi driver caught with cocaine hidden in the car he was driving has been jailed for six years and four months.
Karl Bennett, 40, was stopped by police at about 18:00 GMT on 7 January after being seen driving his father-in-law's taxi "erratically" in the area of Strang.
Officers found a blue plastic bag containing cocaine the size of a tennis ball, with further searches of his garage and bedroom uncovering drugs with a street value of between £27,250 and £54,500.
Jailing him, Deemster Graeme Cook said it was an "extremely serious charge".
Douglas Courthouse heard paraphernalia including weighing scales covered with white residue was also found in Bennett's home.
The 40-year-old, who had appeared nervous to officers when stopped, was arrested that day and and answered no comment in police interview, the court was told.
He later pleaded guilty to possession of cocaine with intent to supply.
His defence advocate told the court Bennett had got in with "the wrong people" and had no previous convictions.
He had been the "delivery driver" of the drugs to clear a debt from his own personal use after he had not been able to work over Christmas due to illness, she told the court.
Bennett had been a taxi driver for his father-in-law at the time, the court heard.
Deemster Cook said an aggravating factor had been that the drug was found in three separate places, which was "some sort of attempt of hiding it".
"It pains me to have somebody with your background here at age 40 for the first time on an extremely serious charge," he added.
Bennett was also ordered to pay back £27,095 within six months under the Proceeds of Crime Act, of which £3,000 would be paid to a local charity.
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