A drug dealer has been jailed after 58 bags of hidden cocaine worth £2,280 were seized from his hotel room.

Sinan Kizil was stopped after police recognised his car while on patrol in Tunbridge Wells.

At around midday on January 4, officers in Mount Ephraim saw a Mini slow down and stop.

As the constables had previously seen the vehicle being used during a suspected drug deal, they stopped to speak to the driver, Kizil.

The 31-year-old claimed it was his first visit to the town and that he was trying to find somewhere to stay.

He was searched under the Misuse of Drugs Act and officers found a bag containing cocaine from his pocket as well as a door card from a nearby hotel.

Kizil was arrested and, when the officers searched his room, 58 bags of cocaine were seized from a sock inside a suitcase.

'He has learned to his cost that drug dealers quickly come to the attention of local patrols and are swiftly brought to justice'

The cocaine was estimated to have a street value of £2,280 and Kizil, from Newcastle-upon-Tyne, was charged with possessing class A drugs with intent to supply.

He pleaded guilty at Maidstone Crown Court and, last Wednesday, and was sentenced to two years and six months’ imprisonment.

Amanda Lissenden, of Maidstone CID, said: "Kizil’s account of visiting Tunbridge Wells for the first time was immediately recognised to be false by the officers who had spotted him in the town a few days previously.

"After that, it was only a matter of time before the diligent officers found the cocaine he had hidden in his clothing and back at his hotel room.

"He has learned to his cost that drug dealers quickly come to the attention of local patrols and are swiftly brought to justice."