A drug dealer who made nearly £325,000 from his role in the illicit trade thanked a sheriff after being ordered to pay back just under £2,000.
Dale Pearson was jailed for five years in 2019 after he was caught with tens of thousands of pounds worth of cocaine stashed in a board game.
The illicit package was intercepted by the UK Border Force in Coventry.
Pearson admitted his part in a major drugs operation that involved trading vast sums of cocaine, diazepam, ethylone, alprazolam and ketamine, through the Royal Mail.
Prosecutors launched Proceeds of Crime action against the 30-year-old, originally alleging he had made more than £750,000.
Pearson, who claimed he had made his money through Bitcoin investments, argued police had valued his cocaine at 10 times what it was actually worth.
On Thursday, Dundee Sheriff Court heard – after more than two years of negotiations – a payback agreement has been reached.
Valuation
The court heard Pearson had personally benefited from the drug trade by £323,877 and 85p.
A compensation order was then made for the “available amount” of £1,875.
Pearson, who represented himself in court, said: “Fair enough, that’s fine.”
When Sheriff Alastair Carmichael confirmed the agreed amount, Pearson replied: “That’s great, thank you.”
The court was previously told Pearson’s deliveries were intercepted at a Royal Mail depot in Edinburgh.
More than a year later, Parcelforce officers contacted police after finding bags of white powder inside a board game that was addressed to a property in Alloway Terrace.
The powder tested positive for cocaine worth £89,000 prosecutors said.
Pearson pled guilty to being concerned in supply on various dates between June 8, 2015, and August 26. 2016.
At a follow-up Proceeds of Crime hearing, he claimed the police had grossly overvalued his cocaine.
Surveyors also made a mistake when valuing his home, the court heard.
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