A BURNLEY drug dealer arrested after the deaths of three East Lancashire men within 45 minutes has been jailed.

Kathleen Norwood, 41, was one of 12 people arrested after the deaths of Robin Ferguson, 53, Emlyn Hodgkinson, 36 and Zaheer Chaudhry, 32.

But police were unable to connect the drugs she possessed with the substances which led to the men’s deaths in February.

However the illegal substances found during her arrest formed the separate prosecution.

Burnley Crown Court was told that Norwood was supplying heroin from the armchair of her home to people she knew.

She was jailed for two years eight months.

Norwood, an addict for two decades, had five other known drug users in her front room when police raided the property at about 9pm on February 26.

Officers found six £10 bags of heroin of 19 per cent purity, as well as two sets of digital scales and off-cuts of plastic bags at the property in Angle Street, the town's crown court heard.

Norwood, who was locked up for 20 months in 2009 for five charges of supplying heroin, had supply-related text messages on her mobile phone.

They showed she had been involved in dealing some kind of drug to others for at least two days before the raid.

Norwood, of Casterton Avenue, Burnley, admitted possessing heroin with intent to supply and possessing cannabis and valium.

The defendant, who had 11 previous convictions, was sent to custody in November 2009, as a result of Operation Nimrod , when she had again been selling from her armchair to people she knew were users.

Nick Dearing, for Norwood, said Norwood had led an ‘extremely bleak’ life but was one of the few defendants who had little self pity.

The solicitor told the hearing: “She is well aware she has wasted the last 20 years because of her addiction to drugs.”

Sentencing, Judge Andrew Woolman told Norwood: "You say you were dealing to a small circle of friends and acquaintances and I am satisfied that's the level of your dealing."

Detectives say they have not traced the high-purity heroin, which is thought to have killed the three men, to any dealer.

They stressed the investigation remains open, but said officers on the cases were in need of fresh information to make a breakthrough.