A DOG breeder stopped near Worcester with cannabis said he was getting stocked up ready to smoke it himself during lockdown.

Gary Nutt was stopped on the M5 near Worcester after police received intelligence the car contained drugs. The 43-year-old admitted possession of a drug of class B when he appeared before magistrates in Worcester on Thursday.

He was stopped in his Audi on the M5 between junction 7 (Worcester South) and 8 (Strensham) on June 10 this year.

Ralph Robyns-Landricombe, prosecuting, said the defendant was arrested with 20 ounces of cannabis, seized by officers. The prosecutor told the court: “He said the 20 ounces was for his personal use. He bought enough to last two months due to the lockdown and had no intention of selling the drugs.”

The prosecution applied for the forfeiture and destruction of the drugs and for £185 costs. The court heard that Nutt had five previous convictions, the last one from 2009.

Mark Sheward, defending, said his client had pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity and had been a user of cannabis for some years. He added that Nutt suffered from some mental health problems and that smoking cannabis ‘alleviates some of the symptoms he suffers from’.

Mr Sheward said that Nutt bought ‘more than he normally would’ because of lockdown.

The solicitor also said there were ‘no aggravating features’ and that the defendant had no previous convictions for similar matters.

His client is in receipt of benefits including Personal Independence Payment and Universal Credit. Magistrates fined Nutt of Lethaby Road, Barnstaple £200, ordered him to pay £185 towards costs and a £34 victim surcharge. “Sorry for wasting all your time” said the defendant.