A drug mule kept police waiting by his hospital bedside for three days before they could recover more than £1,000-worth of crack cocaine hidden in his body.

Gerrard Agyeman, of Abbots Road, Mitcham, refused food and liquids to slow down the police investigation while he was kept under observation in a Plymouth hospital.

After being caught with the drugs in Exeter, magistrates ordered a three-day “lie-down” in hospital while police wait for him to produce 46 wraps of the class A drug he had swallowed, each weighing 8.5g.

Agyeman’s solicitor, Lee Brembridge, said the 21-year-old was acting under threat because he was a crack user himself and owed money to dealers.

He said he had been a bright student who won a place to study history at Goldsmith’s University in London but whose life had been ruined by drugs, which he started taking when he was just 16.

He said: “I accept this offence was aggravated by his attempts to conceal the drugs but he was a young man of 20 at the time who was scared of offering up what he had hidden.”

Agyeman pleaded guilty to possessing crack cocaine with intent to supply at Exeter Crown Court and was jailed for 30 months by Recorder Peter Towler on Friday, June 22.

Mr Towler said: “It is a great pity you find yourself before the court because it is quite clear you have a lot of ability and potential.

“It is also clear that some years ago you became involved with drugs and got yourself in a downward spiral.

“What makes this more serious is that it is not your first conviction for this sort of offence.

“Furthermore you did your best to obstruct the officers seeking to investigate the matter.

“I accept you were under some pressure but that is not an unusual feature in these cases. Many couriers are under pressure from dealers.”

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