A BMW driver caught delivering a kilo of heroin claimed he did it because he could not afford the car insurance.

Builder Joe Smith, 30, was stopped by police near Faversham because the BMW Series 3 had false number plates.

Smith was the only occupant and in the foot well of the front passenger seat officers found a package wrapped in black plastic and tape.

They tore a slit in it and found a dense block of brown powder, which tests confirmed to be heroin.

Canterbury Crown Court heard that the drugs were worth up to £200,000 if sold on Margate streets, where they were destined to be sold.

When police then went to Smith's home Swanstree Avenue in Sittingbourne they discovered a cannabis factory.

Prosecutor Michael Williams told how windows at the house were blacked out to keep prying eyes away from the 90 plants growing inside.

Smith, who admitted two drugs offences involving heroin and cannabis, also had £3,000 in cash inside his home.

He claimed he was paid a wage to look after the plants.

Paul Hogben, defending, said Smith wasn't a "major" player in the drugs operation and had just been a courier for others.

"He was there as a gardener and paid a weekly wage to grow the cannabis."

Mr Hogben said this was Smith's first offence and he started after getting into debt when his fiancee lost her job.

"He is not a class A drug user but has smoked cannabis," he added.

Judge Catherine Brown jailed him for six years.

She told him: "You were a trusted courier who played a key role in the commercial operation."

Another 30-year-old man from Sittingbourne was also arrested on suspicion of both offences. Inquiries into his involvement are ongoing.

Detective Constable Robert Feasey, the investigating officer for this offence, said: "Smith was found with a large amount of heroin, something which far extends personal use and clearly shows he was actively involved in supplying the drug.

"His arrest was the by-product of excellent information gathering and proactive policing.

"He was caught in the act and was unable to deny the irrefutable evidence gathered against him."