Drug couriers were ‘foaming at mouth’
By BBC News – Monday, 28 August, 2000
Copyright: BBC News
A duo branded Britain’s most hopeless drug couriers have been jailed after being caught on two inept drug runs.
John McAdams and Matthew Howarth were first caught when they ran ran their car off the road at high speed – then tried to bury half a kilo of cannabis and 800 diazepam tablets while other motorists looked on in amazement.
When police arrived, McAdams was so heavily drugged there was blue foam around his mouth.
He was only capable of grinning inanely.
The pair appeared at Dunfermline Sheriff Court and were granted bail days later.
But only a day after receiving their fereedom they tried to carry out another run – and only managed to travel a few miles further.
The pair were spotted at a service station – again with blue foam around their mouths – and were arrested.
Police found that they still had their bail orders in their pockets.
Telephone engineers McAdams, 25, from Aberdeen and Howarth, 27, from Inverness, appeared at Perth Sheriff Court on Monday, where they admitted charges of being concerned in the supply of diazepam and cannabis resin. McAdams also admitted dangerous driving.
Howarth was jailed for nine months and McAdams for 11 months
The pair were branded Britain’s most hopeless drugs couriers by detectives who worked on the case.
Locked up
Afterwards, one Tayside Police officer said afterwards: “It would be great if every drug dealer made it that easy for us.
“They should probably locked up for their own safety as much as anyone else’s.”
The duo were first caught on 29 April after a 90 mile per hour crash.
Fiscal depute Chris Macintosh said McAdams had been seen driving a red Peugeot at high speed from Edinburgh towards Perth.
He lost control on a bend shortly after the Forth Bridge and the car ended up flying into a patch of rocky ground being worked on to create a new park and ride.
They declined help from other motorists and then to tried and hide their consignment of drugs.
‘Bizarre manner’
“All the witnesses saw both accused behave in a very bizarre manner,” Mr Macintosh said.
Cannabis with a street value of £2,600 pounds was recovered, along with 785 diazepam tablets worth £1 each.
On 3 May, a day after they were released from custody, they set off again with another consignment of 813 diazepam tablets.
When they pulled in to Granada Services at Kinross, staff noticed they were both unsteady on their feet.
“One witness noted what he described as blue gunky spit around both their mouths,” Mr Macintosh said.
‘Amateur’ behaviour
Solicitor Stephen Fox said Howarth had taken a valium on the first trip and woke up to find himself upside down in the field.
“It is perhaps indicative of the amateur way they went about it that their behaviour at the service station drew attention to them,” Mr Fox said.
“He helped himself to a couple of tablets and the police found them in the car.
“It’s about as easy a case as the police will ever have.”
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