A man returned to drug dealing in Ipswich after work dried up during Covid, a court heard.

On Friday, Kieran Parslow appeared for sentencing at Ipswich Crown Court.

Parslow, 30, was facing charges which related to 2021, when he was living in Ipswich. 

Parslow, of John Hammond Close, Colchester, pleaded guilty last month to possession of diamorphine, a Class A drug, with the intent to supply, and being concerned in the supply of diamorphine to another.

The court heard that around 2pm on March 22 2021, an officer was on patrol when he saw two women in Little Bramford Lane in Ipswich. Knowing that the lane was frequented by users of Class A drugs, the officer kept watch.

A man joined the women, and then a second man, now known to be Parslow, arrived on a bike. The officer saw him take something from his pocket and give it to one of the women in exchange for cash, repeating the sale with the man.

The officer ordered Parslow to stop, but he rode away on his bike.

The officer made a radio call, and Parslow was apprehended by a colleague. By this time he had discarded his green puffa jacket, his rucksack, and the bicycle.

However, Parslow cooperated with the police, and retraced his steps and showed officers where he had stashed his property.

Contained inside his belongings were two separate amounts of cash totalling £172.90. He also had cash deposit receipts for two banks totalling £760 and two mobile phones, which contained the contact details of at least five people in Ipswich known to be Class A users.

A search was carried out at Parslow’s home in Ipswich, where several wraps of diamorphine were found.

Parslow has previously been convicted to being concerned in the supply of Class A drugs.

However, he had managed to turn his life around in recent years, and had been working in landscaping, gardening and building work.

When work became scarce during the pandemic, the court heard that Parslow turned to drug dealing once more in order to provide for his family.

His defence barrister, Nicola May, told the court that he bitterly regrets this action now.

In sentencing Parslow, Judge David Wilson said that he could have sentenced Parslow to a harsher sentence of seven years, with his previous convictions making him a “three striker”.

However, he made the decision to reduce this to three years for both offences, of which Parslow will serve half.

Judge Wilson explained that he had reduced the sentence, in light of the passage of time, the positive attitude Parslow had shown in prison, and the impact on his family.