A DRUG dealer made a doomed escape attempt to outrun the police on an electric bike after they suspected him of trafficking heroin and crack cocaine.

Harris Mann crashed into a barrier and tried to hide in a bush when he was spotted on Blackwater Close in the Bettws area of Newport.

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Prosecutor Heath Edwards said: “It was around 1.30pm when officers saw him on the electric bike which was capable of speeds of a speed of up to 50mph.

“He tried his best to escape the attention of the police. He rode the electric bike across a footpath near Wye Crescent.

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“The defendant went along the footpath where members of the public were walking.

“He collided with a barrier causing damage to the handlebars and fell off.

“The defendant carried on his escape by running away and tried to hide in a bush.”

Mr Edwards said he was arrested when police used PAVA spray to stop him.”

Cardiff Crown Court heard how officers found eight wraps of heroin and 10 wraps of crack cocaine in the defendant’s jacket.

A search of his home unearthed more drugs and his mobile phone contained drug-related text messages.

The total amount of drugs recovered totalled £620.

Mann, 21, of Waveney Close, Bettws, Newport, pleaded guilty to possession of heroin with intent to supply and possession of crack cocaine with intent to supply.

He also admitted dangerous driving, driving with no insurance and driving otherwise than in accordance with a licence

The offences were committed on April 16.

Ben Waters, mitigating, said his client was homeless at the time and was “an easy target” for those who had exploited him.

He added Mann was blind in one eye after being shot with a pellet gun when he was younger.

The judge, Recorder Ignatius Hughes QC, jailed the defendant for three years.