A "sweating and shaking" drug dealer blurted out to police where they would find his stash of crack cocaine and heroin after confessing he had done "something stupid".

Robert Herbert came clean immediately after officers had pulled his vehicle over in Maidstone Road, Chatham, in September 2019.

The 56-year-old also revealed he had agreed to sell the class A drugs for £100 on behalf of someone he had "met in a pub", Maidstone Crown Court heard.

But despite his crime being committed more than five years ago, as well as Herbert's candidness with police, it was not until last Monday (November 11) that justice finally caught up with him.

Explaining the reason for the lengthy delay, prosecutor Ethan Dighton told the sentencing hearing that the case was sent by police to the Crown Prosecution Service in April 2020 for advice, which eventually led to Herbert being charged by postal requisition in December that year.

However, the Network Rail engineer failed to attend his first court hearing in front of magistrates in February 2021.

A warrant was therefore issued for his arrest but it was not executed for three years, resulting in the 'wanted' crook finally appearing at Maidstone Magistrates' Court in July this year.

He subsequently pleaded guilty to two offences of possession with intent to supply in respect of 16 wraps of crack cocaine and 13 of heroin.

But with the case having been committed to the crown court for sentence, Judge Julian Smith heard rather than Herbert having been 'on the run' in the intervening years, he had in fact become street homeless and his whereabouts unknown.

It was only once he again had a roof over his head, provided by a charity, that he was traced by the authorities, explained his lawyer, Philippa Beswick.

"He wasn't aware of any court summons until he found accommodation again and they [the police] came knocking at his door," she told the court.

The drugs he had been arrested with were said to be worth up to £900. Herbert, now of Cornwell Crescent, Stanford-le-Hope, Essex, planned to put his payment towards his credit card debts.

Urging that he be punished in the community rather than behind bars, Ms Beswick said that not only had he since given up drugs and smoking and only drank "socially" but he had even been due to start a job at Tilbury Docks in Essex on the day of his crown court hearing.

Agreeing that he could be spared jail, Judge Smith said although he accepted Herbert had not been "focused on evading" the law for three years, he would need to focus on addressing his ongoing issue with alcohol.

Herbert was handed 18 months' imprisonment suspended for two years, with 180 hours of unpaid work and 10 rehabilitation activity requirements.