Man Found in Car With £14,000 of Drugs and Lamb Named Pablo

A man found travelling in a car containing cocaine and heroin worth £14,000 has escaped a prison sentence, despite police discovering a lamb named Pablo eating chips in the back seat.

John McNeil, 56, was a passenger in Lindsey Sangster’s Volkswagen Golf when it was stopped by officers on the M74 in Glasgow at around 6.10pm on April 22, 2023.

During the search, officers were stunned to see the lamb sitting in the rear of the vehicle and helping itself to a bag of chips.

When questioned about the animal, police said McNeil told a sergeant that Sangster, who was his partner at the time, was a “trainee shepherdess.”

The pair claimed they had picked up the lamb, which had been named after Colombian drug kingpin Pablo Escobar, after finding it in a “dangerous position” in the middle of the road.

However, their account came under scrutiny when a police dog discovered bags of heroin and cocaine hidden beneath the front passenger seat.

McNeil and Sangster were subsequently convicted of possessing cocaine and diamorphine with the intention of supplying the drugs.

The court previously heard that Pablo belonged to North Lanrigg Farm in Motherwell, owned by farmer Kirsty Mair.

Ms Mair had not authorised the pair to take the lamb, the court was told.

McNeil, from Fairlie in North Ayrshire, returned to court to be sentenced. Sangster, of Kilbirnie, was absent, and a warrant was issued for her arrest.

Sheriff Tony Kelly spared McNeil jail, instead ordering him to complete 300 hours of unpaid work. He must also wear an electronic tag for six months and remain at home between 8pm and 5am.

The sheriff said he had been advised that McNeil presented a low risk of reoffending.

Sergeant Nick Twigg, 42, told jurors that he had grounds to stop Sangster’s car on the motorway that evening.

Officers initially found a glass pipe in the driver’s door pocket, while additional pipes were seized from McNeil and Sangster.

Sgt Twigg said: ‘There was a lamb found in the back of the car.

CONTINUE READING: Jayson Baxter Illness And Health 2024: What Happened To CTV News Anchor? – NewsFinale

‘I asked Sangster where it came from and McNeil said that she was a trainee shepherdess.’

Prosecutor Julianna Keenan asked whether there was any evidence to support the explanation. The officer replied: ‘No, the lamb at the time was eating a bag of chips left on the back seat. There were no bottles.’

A police dog called Billy later located two bags containing £4,640 worth of cocaine and £10,050 worth of heroin beneath the front passenger seat.

The purity of the cocaine was stated to be no less than 76 per cent.

Pablo the lamb was taken to a farm in Ayrshire where it was held for 48 to 72 hours before being returned to Ms Mair. 

A charge of resetting the lamb was dropped by the Crown mid-trial as there was ‘no reported theft’ at the time. 

McNeil told jurors in his evidence that he had experience with animals, having worked in the past with his father, who is a retired agricultural contractor.

He stated they came across Pablo on the middle of the road on the way home to Ayrshire after a journey to Edinburgh for the other man to purchase a car.

McNeil claimed that Pablo was ‘dehydrated’ and appeared not to have been fed for a couple of hours.

He told the court that the plan was to ‘take him back to the owner’ as Pablo had identity markings on his ears.

McNeil denied any knowledge of the drugs in the car, as did Sangster. 

Jurors were told that Sangster was under the influence of drugs at the time when she was behind the wheel and pleaded guilty at separate proceedings.

She was disqualified from driving for 18 months and ordered to do 100 hours of unpaid work.  

Bronwyn Moore, defending McNeil at the sentencing, said her client was now a team leader at a construction company and that he was ‘at the height of his addiction’ when arrested. 

After the lamb was returned to Mair, she said he was in fine health and happy with ‘his new pet lamb pals’.