Electrician 'forced to carry heroin'

A RECESSION-HIT electrician became a drug courier when he lost his job and was "too proud" to ask for help to pay his mortgage, a judge has heard.

A kilo of heroin with a possible street value of almost 100,000 was seized when Jamie Carter, 28, was snared by "Operation Silver" – a police stake-out which had been set up to trap another drug trafficker.

At the High Court in Edinburgh yesterday, Carter, of Lasswade Road, Edinburgh, admitted being concerned in the supply of the drug on 29 June last year.

Defence advocate Michael Anderson said dad-of-two Carter had lost his job because of a downturn in trade. "He was too proud to go to his family and ask for help paying his mortgage," added the lawyer.

Judge Lord Pentland called for background reports and allowed Carter, a first offender, to remain on bail pending sentence in March.