A West Belfast political rep has told how a brazen drug dealer phoned a local taxi firm in a bid to recover his stash after leaving it in a cab.
The bungling criminal left behind a grip bag filled with quantities of cocaine and cannabis, as well as an assortment of paraphernalia including a set of micro-scales, baggies, and the local anaesthetic benzocaine, which is used a cutting agent.
He later called the depot in a panic asking if he could have his bag back. However, the taxi driver had since handed it into local IRSP representatives for disposal.
Mid Falls IRSP rep, Dan Ó Murchú, said: "The fella jumped out of the car and left the bag, and the driver smelled the grass in it, so he lifted it and handed it over to the IRSP.
"It was loaded with bags of coke, bags of grass, and benzo, which was ready to be mixed and distributed."
He added: "The fella actually phoned back and said that he had left his child's bag in the car, but was told it had been handed over to community representatives and he just hung up the phone."
Mr Ó Murchú said the haul included around 10 to 15 grams of cocaine, and around £200 worth of cannabis, which has subsequently been destroyed. He said the incident comes just a week after a large quantity of cocaine was uncovered outside a primary school in the Clonard area.
"This is in the wake of about £4,000 worth of coke being left outside St. Clare's Primary School," he said.
"If the taxi driver didn't notice that bag then some child could have opened it - it's just madness that stuff like that is being left about so carelessly.
"We're glad to have got it off the street at least."
