Driver stopped for talking on cellphone found with bags of weed and cash

Need for weed: Cannabis found in man's car was for supply and not his own use. Photo / 123RF

A convicted drug dealer stopped by police for talking on his cellphone while driving, was also found with "more weed than he needed".

Despite arguments from his lawyer the 172 grams of cannabis in four snap-lock bags was for his own use, Ryan Mills was sentenced on the charge to which he had admitted: Possession of cannabis plant for supply.

The cannabis, plus $865 in cash and a set of scales were found when police stopped Mills after he was spotted driving while talking on his phone in February this year.

Lawyer Lucy Patchett said police assumed Mills was selling the cannabis by the way it was packaged, yet "he had not engaged in selling it".

Police prosecution told the Nelson District Court today Mills' "significant history", including a conviction in 2015 for the possession and sale of methamphetamine, suggested otherwise.

Police said community detention was the appropriate outcome on the cannabis charge, along with forfeiture of the cash.

Judge Tony Zohrab said in sentencing Mills that while there'd been a suggestion there was no commercial aspect to the drugs and paraphernalia found, Mills "had more weed than he needed", so had started selling it.

He noted Mills' previous convictions for possession of LSD and methamphetamine for supply.

Mills, who had also admitted a charge of breaching bail, was sentenced to six months' community detention and 100 hours' community work, plus 12 months' supervision and ordered to attend counselling and alcohol and drug programmes as directed.

Judge Zohrab also made an order for the destruction of the drugs paraphernalia and the cash, and issued a final warning with regard to commercial drug dealing.

"Not long ago you would have been sentenced to prison but I don't see the point in doing that, given the contents of the (pre-sentence) report," Judge Zohrab said.

Judge Zohrab noted in the context of his previous offending it was a "modest operation".