A MAN with no criminal record committed a series of offences over six months after turning to drugs following a personal tragedy, a court heard.

Now magistrates have given him a year's probation to tackle his problem and told him: "We hope a probation order will help you change your attitude to drugs."

The Blackburn bench warned David Beeke: "We feel we have done everything we could to help you. Any failure to comply with the order will bring you back to this court."

Beeke, 24, of Anchor Grove, Darwen, admitted unauthorised possession of amphetamine and cannabis, driving while unfit through drugs, cultivating a cannabis plant and driving without insurance.

Philip Potter, prosecuting, said police went to Beeke's home last July to speak to him in connection with motoring matters and noticed two plants on the windowsill and one on the television which turned out to be cannabis.

The following month the defendant was seen driving a red Astra on Bolton Road by officers who saw it mount the kerb, swerve from side to side and go through traffic lights on red. Mr Potter said officers who spoke to him described him as behaving oddly and said they could not make any sense out of what he said. They found cannabis resin in the car and medical tests later revealed amphetamine in his blood.

Two months later he was arrested and searched and found in possession of what he described as "speed".

Ronald Manning, defending, said Beeke had committed a large number of offences over a relatively short period of time and the report prepared for the court by the probation service outlined his drug problems following a personal tragedy.

Beeke was banned from driving for a year.

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