Homeless man reveals how he took zombie-drug Spice to sleep in freezing conditions

Chesterfield magistrates’ court heard on Wednesday, February 28, how Mark James Meikleham, 37, was approached by police after they had seen him with a bag which contained the class B drug.

Prosecuting solicitor Becky Allsop said: “Police were on patrol at a bus station on New Beetwell Street, Chesterfield, and saw Meikleham with a bag in his hand.

“In total, there were seven bags containing the drug commonly known as Spice which was recovered.”

Meikleham told police he had bought 14 bags the previous day and he smokes seven-a-day and used the drug to help him sleep at night because he is homeless.

The defendant pleaded guilty to possessing 6.78grammes of the class B drug, named formally as 5F-MDMB-PINACA, after the incident on January 4.

Defence solicitor Julie Page said the offence pre-dates a court hearing from February 15 when the defendant was sentenced to a six-month community order for two thefts.

She argued that if the drug offence had been dealt with at that time with the thefts it is unlikely Meikleham would have received any greater sentence.

Ms Page added: “He accepts he had been using the drug to help him sleep. He’s been homeless for some time.

“More often than not he sleeps in any doorway he can find.”

Ms Page said that Meikleham, who is being supported by homeless charity Pathways, on Saltergate, Chesterfield, has stopped using the drug and has recently registered a negative test result.

Magistrates fined Meikleham £40 and ordered him to pay a £30 victim surcharge.