A DRUG dealer wore two pairs of trousers in a botched attempt to hide nearly £2,000 worth of crack cocaine and heroin from police.

Marcus Pedlingham also tried to stop police getting into a bedroom, holding the door shut, after officers had already forced entry into his Malvern home.

The dealer, who appeared over videolink from prison, was jailed at Worcester Crown Court yesterday following the raid which ended the dealing business he set up to fund his own drugs habit.

The 25-year-old admitted possession of crack cocaine and heroin with intent to supply and possession of cannabis after police executed the warrant at Russell Close on January 7 this year.

Cathlyn Orchard, prosecuting, said the raid happened at the defendant's mother's address where he was living.

When officers arrived they tried to gain entry to a rear bedroom as Pedlingham and another male attempted to prevent them.

"Police managed to force entry after a struggle and the defendant was detained" she said.

Officers seized scales, cash, mobile phones and 11 SIM cards.

Miss Orchard said: "He told police he had drugs in his trousers. He was wearing two pairs of trousers."

In the inner pair of the two police found three packages of heroin and two of crack cocaine.

In total officers found 9.1g of heroin and 7.9g of crack cocaine with a combined street value of £1,700.

The three phones were examined contained text messages relating to drug dealing between November 28 last year and January 3 this year.

One message sent on January 3 said 'on', a reference to the defendant having drugs to sell. Police also recovered handwritten notes.

"These are diary notes, plainly dealer's lists" said Miss Orchard.

One of the lists contained 11 different names and showed what they owed with debts of between £20 and £110.

The defendant also had £295 in cash. The judge ordered the cash to be confiscated and further ordered the forfeiture and destruction of the drugs and other associated paraphernalia.

Pedlingham answered 'no comment' to all questions put to him by police.

The defendant did not indicate a plea when he appeared at the magistrates court but admitted all three counts when he appeared at Worcester Crown Court yesterday, earning him a 25 per cent reduction in the length of the custodial sentence imposed.

Paul Stanley, for Pedlingham, said the evidence against his client had been 'overwhelming', including not just mobile phones but dealer's lists.

Mr Stanley said Pedlingham started smoking cannabis at the age of 11 or 12 and lost his brother at the age of 17 which was when his 'more serious drug use' started. He resorted to using heroin and cocaine.

"He has struggled with his health, with anxiety and depression and was diagnosed with ADHD from a young age" said Mr Stanley.

He added: "He started dealing in the latter part of November last year. That was essentially to fund his own habit."

There was no-one else involved in the business. "It's him and him alone" said Mr Stanley.

Judge Robert Juckes QC told Pedlingham: "You know that the courts without exception pass significant custodial sentences for dealing in class A drugs.

"You know the reason for that is not just because dealing is in itself a serious crime but because of the amount of crime that dealing creates."

He said those who used such drugs often could not afford them and 'commit crime in order to be able to do so'.

The judge also told him that he had 'graduated' from simple possession and using to 'quite significant dealing'.

The phone evidence and dealer's lists suggested he was selling drugs to 15 people 'in the the Malvern area'.

Judge Juckes jailed Pedlingham for 42 months and warned him: "If you continue to deal in drugs the sentences will get significantly longer each time that you're caught."