Man handed two years in jail for dealing crack cocaine in Harrogate

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Michael Balog, 19, was still on prison licence for previous offences when he was caught with what turned out to be a relatively small amount of the Class A drug in the town.

But prosecutor Lewis Allan Kerr told York Crown Court that the teenager had been street dealing, ostensibly to pay back a debt.

Recorder Tahir Khan QC, who jailed Balog for two years and four months, told him: “We are talking about the supply at street level of Class A drugs.

“It’s general knowledge that Class A drugs, and the supply of them, cause misery and the courts have to take a hard line on people who involve themselves in this type of conduct, even at the level that you were at.”

Balog, of Kennion Road, Harrogate, admitted possessing a Class A drug with intent to supply. He was caught with the drugs at Cheltenham Mount on October 2.

Jeremy Barton, for Balog, said the teenager had been using drugs himself after being released from his last prison sentence and started dealing to pay off debts. Although Balog had previous convictions, he had none for drug-dealing.

Mr Khan QC told Balog: “You’ve been in trouble before and (the dealing offence) was about six-to-seven months after you were released from your last (prison) sentence.”

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Jailing Balog for 28 months, Mr Khan said he had reduced the sentence that he originally had in mind due to the “powerful” mitigation, the teenager’s timely guilty plea and the Covid crisis which was prevalent in prisons.