A MAN caught dealing drugs to undercover police officers was jailed for eight months at Jedburgh Sheriff Court, pictured.
Twenty-three-year-old Dale McAulay was involved in seven transactions of heroin over some 11 weeks.
McAulay, of Edinburgh Road, Kelso, admitted supplying diamorphine at a flat in Drumlanrig Square, Hawick, between April 11 and July 5, 2012.
Procurator fiscal Graham Fraser told Friday’s hearing how the accused was caught during Operation Goal – described by police at the time as “a long-term project to not only minimise, but eradicate the scourge of drugs within Scottish Borders communities”.
Mr Fraser said the accused was involved in seven deals of heroin, valued at £180, to undercover police officers.
Rory Bannerman, defending, said his client had been a heroin user at the time, but had since “changed his life around”. Urging Sheriff Derrick McIntyre to consider a community-based sentence, the lawyer added: “He has moved town, has a flat, a fiancée and a baby, and has also found himself work.”
Mr Bannerman said the undercover police officers had “befriended” McAulay to the extent of helping him decorate his flat, adding: “He saw the opportunity of getting some heroin for himself by selling it.”
The sheriff said: “This was not possession, but supply, albeit on a small scale. Drugs are a blight on the community and those who deal in them must be dealt with severely.”