A BAGGAGE handler was caught with cocaine down his trousers after he was searched by officers outside a popular family pub.

Daniel Smith, 24, was found in possession of the class A drug when police searched him and two other friends near The Cowherds Pub at around 6pm on December 6.

Sarah Lodge, prosecutor, told Southampton Magistrates' Court that the police approached the men inside a car parked outside the pub before taking them to Southampton Central Police Station.

She said: “When someone searched him, they found he had cocaine worth £40 down the front of his trousers.

“He was given a conditional caution about this but failed to comply with it.”

The court heard that Smith had previously been found in possession of the substance on September 7.

Raymond Tan, representing Smith, said: “He should have followed the conditional caution.

“He works as a baggage handler at Southampton port but as the work was only seasonal he was considering training to become a forklift driver.”

Mr Tan added: “He has stopped taking drugs and looks after his child three days a week.

“This could have been a lot easier for him if he complied with the caution.”

Smith, of Teme Crescent, Millbrook, pleaded guilty to possession of a controlled drug of class A.

He was sentenced to a six-month conditional discharge and ordered to pay £85 costs and £20 victim surcharge.

An application for forfeiture and destruction of the drugs was granted.