Teenage drug dealers caught in restaurant (From Bury Times)

Teenage drug dealers caught in restaurant

11:43am Thursday 28th February 2013 in News

TWO teenage drug dealers were caught with crack cocaine in a McDonald’s restaurant in Bury, a court heard.

The 16-year-olds, who cannot be named for legal reasons, were arrested in Bury town centre after people became suspicious of their behaviour and alerted police.

At Bolton Crown Court on Friday, Judge Paul O’Brien told the boys they would have been jailed for up to seven years if they had been adults.

But after hearing from youth rehabilitation experts that one boy had made progress since the incident, and the other had learning difficulties, he chose not to send them to custody.

The court heard how on August 7 last year, the boys had been given drugs by older dealers whom they were not prepared to name in court in fear of reprisals.

One of the boys was told that, for every £10 of drugs he sold, he would get £1.50, while the other boy was told he would get £50 for the day.The first boy had in his possession £100 in cash, 10 wraps of crack cocaine and 19 wraps of heroin. The drugs had a street value of £290.

The second boy had £120 in cash, 14 wraps of crack cocaine and 32 wraps of heroin. The drugs had a street value of £460.

The boys told police that the money came from drug deals they had done earlier in the day. Police also found a mobile phone which one of the boys had dropped. It had text messages that were associated with drug dealing, the court heard. At earlier hearings, both boys admitted two charges each of possessing class A drugs.

Defending the boy found with £120 cash, Stuart Duke said: “It beggars belief that children are out dealing crack cocaine and heroin in the middle of Bury town centre and anything I say cannot decry from that.

“However, he does have learning difficulties and it is clear that he doesn’t even really know what heroin and crack cocaine are. This was the first time he had done this and he has no previous convictions.”

Judge O’Brien ordered the boy to adhere to a youth rehabilitation order for 12 months and a three-month evening curfew. The court heard how the other boy had one previous conviction for possessing a weapon with intent.

Judge O’Brien made him subject to an intensive supervision and surveillance order and a three-month evening curfew.

The judge said: “These are very serious offences.

“Over the coming months, you will be asked to do some things that you do not want to do, but, for God’s sake, do what is asked of you, because the alternative does not bear thinking about.”

One of the boys lives in Heywood and the other in Blackley