Drug delivery grandmother jailed

Cannabis resin was also found in Shaftoe's home

A grandmother from Cornwall who delivered drugs in Plymouth and Truro has been jailed for six months after being caught with 10 kilos of cannabis.

It was found when Christine Shaftoe was stopped by police when she was driving, Plymouth Crown Court was told.

Shaftoe, 53, of Babis Farm Close, Saltash, pleaded guilty to one count of possession of a class C drug with intent to supply.

She also pleaded guilty to two counts of possession of a class C drug.

These are serious matters Recorder Kevin De Haan QC

When she was stopped by police because of her "nervous manner", they found what she claimed was a bag of books, but after smelling drugs they opened the bag to find five kilos of cannabis resin valued at more than £14,000.

Officers later searched her home and found a further five kilos of the drug and £327 worth of other forms of cannabis.

She was sentenced to six months for the first count with no separate penalty for counts two and three.

A probation report recommended a suspended sentence or community order but Recorder Kevin De Haan QC said the quantity of cannabis meant immediate custody.

'Good character'

"This is a case involving a large quantity of cannabis resin," he said.

"The fact is that you became a cog, by agreeing to carry this material, in a chain of commercial distribution.

"These are serious matters. I am going to impose a sentence I believe to be the absolute minimum for the gravity of the offence."

The court heard Shaftoe was paid about £250 for making the deliveries - which she had done "two or three times before".

Piers Norsworthy, defending, said she was a woman of good character and was not living a life of luxury but had needed "a little more money for the family pot".