Woman found with £700 of drugs hidden inside her
A woman has been given a 'rare' chance by a judge after she was found to have drugs worth £700 hidden inside her.
Carla Francis, 38, was stopped in her car by police when she was in Mid Wales in March last year, and was taken to hospital.
When at hospital, Francis, of Oldford Rise, Welshpool, took out drugs which she had hidden inside herself.
She was charged with possession with intent to supply crack cocaine and heroin, together with an earlier supply charge based on messages found on her phone.
On Wednesday at Mold Crown Court, Judge Niclas Parry said she had admitted offences that would normally see her jailed for 27 months.
But he deferred any sentence for four months, after being told that a fully-funded placement was available for her at a residential drugs rehabilitation unit in Weston Super Mare.
The court heard how the drugs were worth £700, and text messages had indicated she was supplying drugs.
Judge Parry said that the Newtown and Welshpool areas were being blighted by class A drugs, and people were suffering and crime was being committed in what he described as one of the “worst places in Wales” for drug problems.
The judge added said due to the drugs course being financed, he had decided to give her a rare chance.
She could be sentenced in February and in the meantime, Judge Parry said it was expected that she would not commit any further crimes and would abide by the rules and regulations of the hostel where she would be placed.
Defending barrister Duncan Bould did not mitigate once it was confirmed by probation officer Emma Mitchell that funding for the course had been made available by the Kaleidoscope organisation.
