A CANNABIS dealer who was selling drugs to finance his own habit has walked free from court after a plea from his sick mother.

Burnley Crown Court heard how takeaway worker Munir Raza, 30, was the sole carer for his mother, who had written a letter saying she couldn't manage without him.

The defendant's mother had urged a judge: “Please look at me and forgive him.”

The hearing was told Raza had had about 48 grams of the drug, worth nearly £500 on the streets, in a car he was driving. He had a cannabis habit to the tune of about £100 a week yet earned £130 a week from his job in Nelson.

The defendant, of Stanley Street, Nelson, had admitted possessing cannabis with intent to supply. He was given six months in jail, suspended for 18 months, with 120 hours unpaid work and must pay £300 costs.

David Macro, prosecuting, said Raza had owned up on the basis he would not supply to strangers, only to people he knew. He did not have an extravagant lifestyle and would not have sold drugs but for his habit.