Ashford drug dealer caught with cannabis, a machete and thousands of pounds in cash

• Watch Kent Police officers searching Craig Wharton's home in Ashford.

A drug supplier caught with large quantities of cannabis and around £8,000 cash at his home in Ashford has been jailed.

Officers found nine mobile phones, of which four were hidden inside a punchbag, and multiple weapons including an extendable baton, a machete, three smaller knives and a knuckleduster at the property in Pound Lane.

Craig Wharton, 36, was not home at the time of the search and left the county after learning what had happened.

He was arrested a week later after being identified as the passenger in a car being driven into Kent via the Dartford Crossing. Officers who stopped the vehicle noticed cannabis being thrown from a window, with drugs also found inside.

Wharton later pleaded guilty to possession of a class B drug with intent to supply, and possession of criminal property.

He was sentenced to three-and-a-half years’ imprisonment at Maidstone Crown Court on Friday 6 January 2023, which included the activation of a suspended sentence received for a previous unrelated offence.

Investigating officer Detective Sergeant Dean Sycamore of the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate said: "Craig Wharton was involved in the supply of cannabis on a commercial scale and kept a wealth of incriminating evidence at his home address.

"He should have used the opportunity to turn his life around when he previously received a suspended prison sentence, but instead he continued to offend and will now serve a period of time behind bars."