Drug dealer found with £1m of high-purity cocaine in the back of his car after being pulled over by police

David McGough, 30, was caught with nine 1kg blocks of high purity drugs in his Ford Fiesta when police pulled him over on the M621 in Leeds.

As he was arrested, the grinning drugs pusher joked that he should 'put off getting his Covid vaccine for seven or eight years', a reference to his expected jail time.

Leeds Crown Court heard the officers found the huge stash in a cardboard box in the footwell of his motor.

Two mobile phones were seized from the car and videos were recovered which showed him boasting as he made journeys transporting vast quantities of cash and cocaine.

One clip appeared to show large blocks of the class A drug in the car and had a caption saying "five of the finest".

In another clip, large bundles of cash could be seen. An expert believed each bundle was £5,000 in £20 notes, the court heard.

Louise Pryke, prosecuting, said police officers made the discovery when they stopped McGough on the motorway on August 25. The cocaine had a purity of 88 per cent.

If mixed with other substances and sold on the streets it was estimated to be worth between £1.3m and £1.4m, she told the court.

A police officer asked McGough if he had any Covid symptoms as he was arrested.

McGough replied that he was due to have his vaccination the following week but said he "might have to delay it for five, six, seven or eight years."

McGough's home in Armley in the city was searched and £900 in cash was seized. Digital scales and a blender were found at the property and contained traces of cocaine. Benzocaine, a common mixing agent for cocaine, was found in a rucksack.

The videos on the defendant's mobile phone revealed five occasions when he transported cash or drugs in July and August.

McGough has previous convictions and was out of prison on licence at the time, the court heard.

Michael Walsh, mitigating, said McGough accepted he must face a lengthy prison sentence and had pleaded guilty to the offence at an early stage.

Mr Walsh said McGough had been out prison for just 11 weeks when he was caught with the drugs. He said McGough had gone into prison in 2018 with significant drug debts.

Mr Walsh said: "He owed interest on the interest on the interest."

He added that McGough agreed to transport drugs and cash as a way of settling his debts.

Sentencing, Judge Simon Batiste said: "I accept that on this occasion you were acting as a courier of the drugs. But I make it clear that this was not an isolated incident. It was part of a pattern of behaviour that you were involved in.

"You were involved in handling very large amounts of money and drugs. You would have had a significant understanding of the operation given the amount of cash and money you were moving around."

McGough was jailed for eight years and three months after pleading guilty to possessing cocaine with intent to supply.