A sheriff has slammed a drug user who claimed police raided his home on the very day he was ordered to look after a safe containing heroin worth £10,000.
Graeme McMullen, 51, insisted he was beaten and received death threats by angry dealers after the illicit stash was seized.
But Sheriff John Hamilton said McMullen was "taking the court for a fool" and it was more likely he was a drug dealer himself.
McMullen still avoided a prison sentence when at Hamilton Sheriff Court this week.
He admitted being concerned in the supply of heroin at his then home in Flaxmill Avenue, Craigneuk, on September 16, 2021.
Rebecca Clark, prosecuting, said police officers armed with a search warrant found a polythene bag containing 125g of heroin. They also recovered a bag that contained 34 individual 3.5g wraps of the drug.
Ms Clark told the court: "Scales with traces of heroin and more polythene bags were also found.
"The accused told police officers someone had dropped off the heroin for him to look after.
"He agreed to do this because he had built up a drug debt."
Defence agent Gavin Lawson said the people who had given McMullen the heroin were "not best pleased" when they found out the police had seized it.
Mr Lawson stated: "My client received death threats, so much so that he had to leave his home address.
"He abandoned his tenancy and fled for his life. He spent many months moving from sofa to sofa in an effort to avoid these persons.
"He was a small cog in a very large machine but understands that all small cogs play a part and he is in a serious position."
Sheriff Hamilton said it "stretched credibility" to suggest that the police had "lucked out" and raided McMullen's home on the day the safe containing heroin was dropped off.
The sheriff said: "That explanation makes it look like he is taking the court for a fool.
"It's not that plausible. I view him as a drug dealer, albeit at a low level."
McMullen was handed a community payback order as an alternative to prison.
He must carry out 300 hours of unpaid community work and will be electronically tagged for six months, meaning he's under curfew at night.
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