A drug dealer in Huntingdon has been jailed for trying to hide crack cocaine in undergrowth and attempting to eat a SIM card, to discard evidence.

Dominic Braima, 20 years old, of no fixed address, attempted to stash crack cocaine in a nearby alleyway when he saw officers approaching and tried to destroy a SIM card by putting it in his mouth and chewing it.

A local policing team spotted Braima acting suspiciously with two other youths while driving down Great Northern Street in Huntingdon around lunchtime on September 29.

They recognised him as someone who had been arrested earlier in the year on suspicion of ‘cuckooing’ – a term used when an occupant is tricked into letting a drug dealer stay in their home.

He pleaded guilty to being concerned in the supply of crack cocaine and heroin in September and was sentenced to 16 months in prison, suspended for two years.

While detained by officers on September 29, Braima tried to get rid of any evidence on the SIM card by chewing it. It was then spat out and seized by police.

They went on to find two mobile phones in his rucksack along with a list of numbers, a debt sheet and a further SIM card.

They also found money in his underwear during a strip search.

Later that day, officers went back to where Braima was located and retraced his steps.

They found a black burner phone with no SIM card and a package containing wraps of a substance later identified to be crack cocaine, hidden in the undergrowth.

CCTV footage showed Braima entering the alleyway where the drugs were discovered.

He was sentenced to 44 months in a young offenders’ institute at Huntingdon Law Courts on Thursday October 28 after pleading guilty to being concerned in the supply of cocaine.

This included 14 months from the previous suspended sentence.

DC Marcus Johnson, who led the investigation, said: “Braima was previously given a second chance by the judge when he was handed a suspended sentence for his crimes.

"However, he went straight back to drug dealing again and this time he’s been put behind bars.

“Drug dealing has no place in our county.

"We work hard around the clock to target those responsible and put them before the court and we won’t stop.

“If you are dealing drugs in Cambridgeshire, we will catch up with you.”

If you suspect drug dealing in your area, report it to us here: https://www.cambs.police.uk/A-Z/Drug-dealing