A man who tried to smuggle cocaine into the island hidden internally has been given a suspended sentence.

Craig Phillip Teare was stopped by police while getting off the ferry from Heysham.

A few days later he ’produced’ two packages of cocaine from his rectum at the hospital.

After he pleaded guilty to importing the class ’A’ drug to the island and possession of it, magistrates sentenced him to six months custody, suspended for two years.

The 35-year-old, who was said to be starting work as a quantity surveyor next week, was also made the subject of a two-year suspended sentence supervision order.

We previously reported how Teare was on the boat from Heysham to the Isle of Man at 4.40am on New Year’s Eve. Police spoke to him as he disembarked and he was described as being ’evasive’ and ’nervous’.

A search found nothing on him but information was received that he was concealing something internally.

He was taken to Noble’s Hospital and on January 4 ’produced’ two packages from his rectum.

The first package contained 0.1 grams of cocaine, while the second package contained three wraps of the drug, containing a total of 2.8 grams.

The total amount of the drug found was 2.9 grams, valued by police at £290.

When interviewed by police, Teare, who lives at Tramman Rise in Anagh Coar, handed in a prepared statement saying he was an addict and that the drug was for personal use only.

He told police that he had been struggling to get cocaine on the island and it was cheaper in England. He said he had paid £200 for the drugs.

The court heard that Teare was sentenced to 120 hours’ community service in June 2021, and had only completed two hours so far.

That sentence was imposed for fraud by false representation after Teare took £1,210 from a woman for bogus TT accommodation.

Defence advocate Paul Rodgers said that Teare was a full-time carer for his child and needed assistance from the Drug and Alcohol Team (DAT).

Mr Rodgers said that his client had recently gained employment as a quantity surveyor and was due to start shortly.

Regarding the community service order, the advocate said that, for a large part of the time, Teare had been working full time, including Saturdays, and that community service had not been available on a Sunday, but now was. Magistrates agreed to let the community service order continue.

Chair of the magistrates Ken Faragher told Teare: ’We are giving you a last chance to try to sort yourself out.’

He must also pay £125 prosecution costs.