Dylan Nicol: Dundee man caught with nearly £2.5m of cocaine after police chase

A man who was caught with nearly £2.5m worth of cocaine in the boot of his car following a high-speed police chase has been jailed for five years.

Dylan Nicol, 24, drove at speeds up to 120mph along the A90 and Kingsway West in Dundee in February as he attempted to evade arrest.

The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) said Nicol’s Volkswagen Golf was eventually surrounded by officers when it came to a halt after its tyres were punctured by a police “stinger” device.

A cardboard box with 13 packages of cocaine was recovered from the boot.

COPFS said the drugs had an average purity of 79%.

Detective Inspector Julia Ogilvie said Nicol “knew the consequences of his actions” but still continued to be involved in the supply of drugs.

The Police Scotland officer added: “His actions that day were dangerous but the potential implications of those drugs making it into our communities could have had an even more devastating impact.”

COFPS said police had been trailing Nicol’s car as it headed east on the A90 from Perth to Dundee at 70mph over suspicions the vehicle contained a quantity of drugs.

At the same time, other officers deployed a “stinger” just before the Swallow roundabout in Dundee, where the A90 becomes Kingsway West, in an attempt to try and stop him.

Meanwhile, while near Longforgan, officers in three marked vehicles surrounded Nicol’s car and activated their blue lights, signalling for him to stop.

Instead, Nicol accelerated up to speeds of 120mph and was seen swerving in and out of traffic before hitting the stinger, which punctured his tyres.

He carried on at 80mph and drove through a red light before officers were able to surround him when the car came to a halt and arrested him as he attempted to flee.

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Nicol pleaded guilty to dangerous driving and a separate charge of being concerned in the supply of cocaine at the High Court in Edinburgh last month.

He was sentenced to five years behind bars at the High Court in Inverness on Friday.

Nicol, of Dundee, will also be made subject to confiscation proceedings under proceeds of crime legislation.

Moira Orr, head of major crime for COPFS, said: “This was a highly successful prosecution which has removed a large quantity of drugs from our streets and caused significant disruption to the local supply chain.

“Dylan Nicol will now spend time in prison paying for his crimes thanks to an extensive police operation, working with COPFS, to investigate and disrupt a network of drug supply.”