Fort William binman hid heroin worth £2,200 in his body
A council binman tried to escape from hospital with a consignment of heroin hidden inside his body, the High Court in Edinburgh has heard.
Police detained John Smith, 43, after he returned home to Fort William from Inverness by bus on the suspicion that he was carrying drugs.
Officers believed he had swallowed the drugs so he was kept under observation at Belford Hospital in Fort William.
Smith was later caught trying to run away from the hospital.
Advocate depute Laura Thomson said a package of heroin was recovered and, if broken down into street deals, the drugs would have been worth £2,200.
Smith admitted being concerned in the supply of the class A drug between 14 April 2008 and 14 April 2010 in Fort William and elsewhere in Lochaber, Aberdeen and Inverness.
The judge, Lord Doherty, deferred sentence on Smith until next month for the preparation of a background report and continued his bail.