A MAN acquitted of cocaine dealing in York city centre is planning to work as a doorman, York Crown Court heard.

A jury heard that Daniel David Sandford, 29, had seven packages of the drug in his boxer shorts when he was stopped at the wheel of a hire car on Goodramgate.

The prosecution alleged that text messages found on a phone in the car were from drug users wanting to buy drugs from him and he was therefore dealing in cocaine.

But Sandford told the jury the phone belonged to a friend which he had borrowed for a short time, and the texts involving him were not related to drugs.

He also said he intended to use all seven packages himself.

After 25 minutes in retirement, the jury acquitted Sandford, of Venice House, Eboracum Way, York, of possessing drugs with intent to supply them to others, but convicted him of possessing them for his own use.

He had previously pleaded guilty to having cannabis found in the car when he was stopped.

After the verdict, his barrister Alex Menary said he had recently completed the course to get a SIA licence that would enable him to work in security jobs, and had the offer of a job as a doorman. The job would require regular drug testing.

Judge Andrew Stubbs QC took Sandford’s previous convictions for drug offences, including possessing cocaine with intent to supply it to other people, into account when passing sentence.

He gave the 29-year-old a 12-month community order with 40 hours’ unpaid work and five rehabilitative days.

Sandford was stopped in January 2017. Mr Menary said he had not been in trouble since then and was motivated to stay drug free.

The jury heard the drugs found in his boxer shorts were worth £300 in street deals.

Sandford said he had bought them from a drug dealer in a car park near the city centre a few minutes before he was stopped for £280.

The trial started on Thursday. The case had been listed for trial on three previous occasions, but had had to be postponed.