A BOURNEMOUTH drug dealer has been jailed for 33 months after he was caught mixing banned substances with so-called ‘legal highs’.

John Richard Isaacs, of Portchester Road in Charminster, pleaded guilty at Bournemouth Crown Court to possession with intent to supply class B and C drugs.

The 45-year-old was first arrested on suspicion of drug offences in October 2010 and admitted selling legal highs via his website. The drugs were sent for testing and some were found to contain class B and class C drugs.

And in February 2012 Isaacs pleaded guilty to three counts of possession of class B and C drugs with intent to supply and was sentenced to a 12-month community order and 100-hours unpaid work.

Following intelligence, officers executed a warrant at his home in June of the same year and found more drugs leading to a further arrest.

Isaacs was charged in February 2013 with four counts of being concerned in the supply of class B drugs and three counts of being concerned in the supply of class C drugs.

However, the case did not come to court until May after the hearing was adjourned while Isaacs attempted to find a forensic expert he claimed would prove previous tests on the substances were inaccurate.

He was unsuccessful and admitted six of the seven offences.

After his conviction in 2012, the courts ordered confiscation proceedings to be made against Isaacs and in December 2013 a judge at Bournemouth Crown Court made a confiscation order under the Proceeds of Crime Act which instructed Isaacs to pay £70,000 he had made from his criminal activity.

The order was settled in full from assets previously confiscated at the start of the investigation.

Detective Constable Jon Sainsbury, of Bournemouth CID, said: “Legal highs are a real danger. This case proves that when you buy so-called legal highs you don’t really know what you are putting in your body and very often the person selling them doesn’t know what they contain.

“I hope this sentence sends out a very strong message that selling drugs in Dorset will not be tolerated. Not only will you face a lengthy prison sentence but we will also seize assets made from criminal activity.”