Blackpool: From the courts 19-04-18

David Heaps, 36, possessing drugs

A Blackpool man has been ordered to pay a total of £235 in fines and costs after he was found in possession of drugs.

David Heaps, 36, of General Street, had four wraps of heroin and a wrap of crack cocaine in a tin when he was searched by police, the town’s magistrates were told.

Heaps admitted possession of the Class A drugs and his lawyer Steven Duffy told the hearing: “The drugs were for his personal use.”

Mark Meek, 35, possessing an offensive weapon and drug

When police searched a man ‘s car they found drugs and an ASP baton.

Mark Meek was driving towards Fleetwood when officers pulled him up on Mains Lane.

The police smelled cannabis and 35-year old Meek admitted he had smoked a joint the night before.

The Ford Focus was searched.

Officers found a small amount of cannabis and the baton.

Meek of Forshaw Close, Fleetwood admitted possessing an offensive weapon and the drugs.

He also admitted driving without a licence and without insurance.

Adrian Hollamby, prosecuting, said that were alerted to the car when it triggered an automatic number plate recognition camera.

In interview Meek said he had owned the baton for about 10 years and kept it in the car because he had been threatened by friends of his former girlfriend with whom he had just split up.

He had a previous conviction for possessing a weapon - a knuckle duster the court heard.

Martin Hillson, defending, said Meek had not threatened anyone with the baton and the magistrates were told that Meek had started to use cannabis at the age of 17 but was now taking steps to end the habit.

Labourer Meek was given 146 days jail.

Martin Brennan, 67, distributing indecent pictures of children

A pensioner made and distributed child pornography a court was told.

Martin Brennan, 67, of Chaucer Guest House, High Street, Blackpool, pleaded guilty to distributing indecent pictures of children via his mobile phone.

He also admitted possessing 768 indecent images of children - some at the highest level of depravity.

The offences took place between September 2016 and January last year at Leicestershire and elsewhere.

Prosecutor, Pam Smith, said some of the pictures were identified as class A - the highest level of indecency.

She asked for Brennan to be sentenced at crown court. Trevor Colebourne, defending, told magistrates: “He has co-operated by pleading guilty immediately he walked into court and in due course will get full credit for that. I concede there are 15 class A images which make it potentially a sentence which might be outside your powers.”

Brennan was bailed to appear for sentence at Preston Crown Court on May 16.

He must not have any unsupervised contact with children under 18 either in person or through an electronic device as a condition of his bail.

Stephen Routledge, 24, damage

A man accused of damaging the roof of a private garage in Blackpool has appeared at court.

Stephen Routledge, 24, of Station Road, South Shore, is accused of committing the offence on New Year’s Day.

Defence solicitor, Gerry Coyle, said on the day of the alleged offence his client had been stabbed in the back and had fled from his attacker.

Routledge had climbed onto a garage roof to avoid his attacker and gone through the roof.

He was then taken to hospital and spent a week there.

His attacker had been charged with wounding him and was scheduled to appear at Preston Crown Court. Routledge was bailed for further inquiries into his case.

Ian Pook, 55, driving with excess alcohol

A tip-off to police netted an aerospace worker who was behind the wheel while over the alcohol limit on a bank holiday.

Ian Pook, 56, of Poulton Road, Fleetwood, pleaded guilty to driving with excess alcohol.

He was banned from the road for 17 months, fined £576 with £85 costs and ordered to pay £57 victims’ surcharge.

Prosecutor, Pam Smith, said police received information a man drinking at Fleetwood Conservatives Club was going to drive on April 2 at 4pm.

A patrol was despatched and Pook was stopped as he drove a Vauxhall Vivaro on the port’s Lowther Road.

A breath test showed 67 micrograms of alcohol in his body - 35 is the limit.

He said he would have to work out how he was going to get to his job now when he had a 7am start.