A ‘foolish’ drug dealer hid bags of heroin and cocaine behind the bath panel in his family home.

Kaseem Fareed, 19, was hiding the drugs for dealers further up the supply chain due to a debt he had with them, with this being his way of paying them back.

Following a search of Fareed’s home in Blackburn, officers found the drugs and related paraphernalia in the bathroom, as well as a small quantity of cannabis in his bedroom.

Adam White, prosecuting, said officers executed a search at Fareed’s home and found cannabis and a red iPhone in his bedroom.

PC McKee then searched the bathroom and upon removing the bath panel, found a freezer bag containing a significant quantity of brown and white powders, which upon analysis were confirmed to be heroin and cocaine.

Also behind the panel were scales and snap bags used for packaging.

There were 226 individual wraps of heroin weighing 33.8g, and 617 packages of cocaine weighing 116g.

Messages analysed on the iPhone showed conversations regarding drugs, though it was not clear which drugs were being referred to.

Mr White said Fareed’s family were unaware the drugs were being hidden in their shared bathroom.

Fareed said he was still involved in the supply of cannabis at the point these drugs were found.

In a separate incident, on November 19, PC Leatherbarrow was patrolling close to Fareed’s home in plain clothes and saw an individual conducting what he believed to be a drug deal with a woman outside.

The officer detained the man, and as he did, the man shouted towards Fareed’s home which prompted him to come to the door where, as Mr White says, he appeared to be holding some sort of bladed article.

When Fareed spotted the officers, he rushed back inside and closed the door.

He is arrested at that point and a subsequent investigation revealed Fareed was working together with another man to attempt to obtain amounts of cannabis, which the Crown said were intended for them to supply to street users.

Mark Stuart, mitigating, said Fareed had been in custody for these offences since April last year, and in that time has been conducting himself well, undertaking courses in maths and English and going on a Time for Change course.

However, Mr Stuart conceded the offences crossed the custody threshold.

He said: “He’s not the most mature 19-year-old one would ever see.

“They thought it good that he stored the drugs because that means they’re away from them.

“Effectively, this is a young man who has been exploited by those above him.

“He accepted he supplied cannabis and always has done.”

Fareed, of Lawrence Street, Blackburn, pleaded guilty to two counts of possession with intent to supply class A drugs, relating to the heroin and the cocaine, and conspiracy to supply class B drugs relating to the cannabis.

Prior to these offences he had just one previous conviction in February 2023 for possessing a prohibited weapon, namely a CS gas cannister, which resulted in a financial penalty from the magistrates’ court.

Sentencing, Judge Ian Unsworth said: “You foolishly agreed to store class A drugs, and a sizeable quantity, behind the bath panel in your family home.”

“You do have something of an unfortunate background. There has been social services involvement and you have been deemed a vulnerable child.

“It is those vulnerabilities that led to you being preyed upon by those more sophisticated in the world of criminality and in relation to drugs.

“You present as a vulnerable person who was preyed upon but has accepted what they’ve have done.

“The peddling of illegal drugs can wreck communities, destroy the lives of individuals, and for anyone who involves themselves in such matters, they must expect a custodial sentence will be passed.”

Fareed was sentenced to a total of two years and four months in prison.

There will be a further hearing on February 6 to determine whether there will be a Proceeds of Crime Act hearing.