Romanian drugs courier facing prison term
A Romanian drug courier faces a prison sentence after being snared in a sting by drug enforcement cops in Inverness.
Andrei-Mihai Balauta was seen handing over cocaine with a potential street value of £21,000 contained in a Pringles crisp tub to a man who was being watched by under-cover cops.
Depute fiscal Michelle Molley described in court how the plain clothes officers were in place at Farraline Park bus station in Inverness when Balauta arrived on a Megabus from England with another man.
The person under police surveillance, who cannot be named for legal reasons, went with the pair into a communal entrance at Farraline Court and Balauta and the man he came off the bus with later went to a bed and guest house in Midmills Road.
About 3.45pm on the same day Balauta was seen leaving the guest house and handing over a tub containing 13 pellets containing 105.3 grammes of cocaine to the man police had been observing at the bus station.
Both were arrested and the fiscal said £3,000 in cash was found in Balauta’s room on top of a wardrobe and under a towel. A further £520 in £20 notes was found in a wallet and 30 Euros.
The pellets were forensically examined and found to contain cocaine of 50 per cent purity.
The fiscal said the Class A drugs recovered had a potential street value of £21,000.
Balauta’s fingerprints were found on the tub containing the drugs.
The fiscal said plastic tape and clothing including a tee shirt and underpants smelling of excrement were deposited by Balauta’s travelling companion in a nearby council waste bin in Midmills Road.
Balauta, (29), described as a Prisoner in Edinburgh, admitted on December 7 last year in Midmills Road being concerned in the supply of cocaine.
Sheriff Miller asked the fiscal what the Crown’s position was as to Balauta’s role in the matter.
"Balauta was essentially the courier concerned with supply by handing it over to Mr ‘X’," the fiscal said. "He was also in possession of large sums of money."
Solicitor George Mathers said he acknowledged sentence would be deferred for reports and he would withhold his plea in mitigation until then.
But he told Sheriff Miller there were some matters he wished to address the court on at this stage.
He told Sheriff Miller there was another tub containing even more cocaine and the £3,000 was not in fact found Balauta’s room but that of his travelling companion on the bus. It was he, said Mr Mathers, and not Balauta, who had internally concealed the drugs on the journey north.
"It his (Balauta’s) position that he has been used cynically by this other man. On his instruction Balauta took possession of the tub and gave it to Mr X.
"As to his involvement, I suppose you could say he was a courier. But he was more of a message boy. The courier was the other man who is away Scot-free back to Romania."
Mr Mathers said Balauta was a computer graduate and father of one. He came to Britain from his home city of Vaslui looking for work.
"He is an intelligent man with an IT degree in computer programming. He is fluent in English, Spanish and Italian and hoped he might find work in IT or tourism.
"He is a man of ability and it’s catastrophic he finds himself in this situation."
The fiscal said the Crown accepted the cash was found in the other man’s room but Balauta had a key to that room.
Balauta, who had been in custody since his arrest was remanded until April 10 for background reports.
