News
Drug dealer ordered to pay back cash
Dated: 04 May 2012
Police have seized more than £100,000 from a convicted drug dealer in Washington under the Proceeds of Crime Act.
On July 24, 2009, officers executed a warrant at an address in Rowan Avenue, Harraton.
One of the rooms in the property was being used to grow cannabis and 82 plants were seized as well as a host of cultivating equipment.
On October 26, 2009, David Paul Harewood was charged with production of cannabis and convicted in May 2010.
He was given a suspended prison sentence and officers began proceedings to seize £109,511 that police believe was obtained through crime.
On May 2, 2012, following a confiscation hearing under the Proceeds of Crime Act it was found that Harewood had earned the money through criminal activity and ordered to pay it back.
If he doesn't pay the amount back within six months he will face up to 25 months in prison and still have to pay the amount owed.
A confiscation order is based on the value of the defendant's assets at the time it is made. The benefit figure is the amount of profit the court decides the defendant has 'earned' through crime.
Any benefit not covered is a lifetime debt and will remain outstanding until it is paid.
Detective Chief Inspector Lisa Orchard of Northumbria Police's Serious and Organised Crime Unit, said: "We are pleased with the outcome of the confiscation hearing. Financial outcomes can be as much of a deterrent as going to jail.
"Anyone found making money from drugs or any other types of crime will be caught and will be dealt with appropriately by the courts. This confiscation order clearly demonstrates that crime does not pay."