A Penryn man with “a flagrant disregard for people and their property” has been sent to prison for 12 weeks after his vehicle was stopped by police and heroin was found.

Conner Mcgurk, 31, of Saracen Close, Penryn pleaded guilty to driving a motor vehicle otherwise than in accordance with a licence when he appeared at Truro Magistrates’ Court just before Christmas.

There was no separate penalty for the offence which happened on June 16 last year on the A391 near the St Austell Printing Company.

However during the stop he was found to be in the possession of Heroin, a controlled drug of Class A. For this offence, magistrates sent him to prison for eight weeks and ordered that the drugs were destroyed after he was convicted for the offence on July 10 this year.

They ordered that the drug be forfeited and destroyed.

He also pleaded guilty to using a motor vehicle on a road / public place without third party insurance on June 16 on the A301 near St Austell as well as failing to provide specimen for analysis as the vehicle driver.

Failing to provide a specimen is an obligatory disqualification offence. McGurk was disqualified from driving for two years and sent to prison for a period of 12 weeks to run at the same time as the eight week sentence.

McGurk was also sent to prison for six weeks after pleading guilty to stealing alcohol and soft drinks from the Co-op on Cliff Road, Falmouth on May 18, concurrent with the other offences.

Magistrates said the reason for prison sentences were because the offences were so serious that only a custodial sentence could be justified and because the defendant “has a flagrant disregard for people and their property”.