A DISTRICT judge has ordered the forfeiture of £1,200 seized during a raid.

Blackburn magistrates heard that digital scales and traces of cannabis were also found in the raid at the home of Jason Jeal, who denied that he had ever been a drug dealer.

But district judge Peter Ward said the financial figures put forward by Jeal and the lifestyle revealed by the police investigation didn't add up.

"On your figures you would appear to have an income of £4,800 and you spend either £1,800 a year, as you claim now, on cannabis, or £3,600 as you told the police in interview," said Judge Ward.

"Most people don't have two large plasma screens, CCTV coverage of their front doorstep, a PlayStation console and a large quantity of games.

"You can't possibly sustain this lifestyle without having some other form of income. You haven't declared any income to the Inland Revenue but clearly you can't live off fresh air."

Jeal, of Ravenglass Close, Blackburn, contested the forfeiture of the money claiming he had saved it over the past 12 months. He said he "did car boot sales" and wheeled and dealed.

He described police intelligence about his activities as "an absolute joke." Judge Ward ordered Jeal to pay £1,250 towards the costs of the police application and suggested that if he stopped using cannabis he would be able to pay at least £150 a month towards the cost which will be sought by the Chief Constable of Lancashire through the civil courts.

No convictions as a result of the raid were revealed.