A VAN passenger was caught on the M6 in north Cumbria with a criminal cocaine cargo potentially worth around half a million pounds.

Alexander Paul Ross, 28, was travelling in a southbound Volkswagen vehicle which was pulled over by police between junctions 40 and 41 on August 2 this year.

Front seat passenger Ross and the driver — against whom no criminal proceedings were ultimately taken — gave inconsistent accounts about where they had been.

“The driver said he had been camping in Arbroath,” the court prosecutor told Carlisle Crown Court. “The defendant (Ross) said something different.

“When asked if there was anything there shouldn’t be in the van, (the driver) said he would have no idea because he had just picked up Mr Ross.”

Police searched the vehicle. Inside an Argos bag was another supermarket bag containing five vacuum-wrapped packages of cocaine, each weighing in at 1kg.

This 5kg criminal cargo was estimated to have a potential street value of around £500,000, the court heard.

Ross, of Sunniside, Middlesbrough, was due to have been sentenced on Monday having admitted possessing the class A drug with intent to supply during an earlier magistrates’ court hearing.

A prosecutor suggested the sentencing guidelines starting point for Ross’s punishment could be 10 years, before Ross’s one-third discount in recognition of his early guilty plea was applied.

However, Jeff Smith, mitigating for Ross, instead suggested the starting point was seven years, in view of what he said was the defendant’s “limited” role in the illegal activity.

In interview, Ross had said he was due to be paid £5,000 for making the trip, the court heard.

Judge Michael Fanning understood that there had not yet been any analysis of a phone seized from Ross by police.

Judge Fanning adjourned the case for a week in a bid to determine whether phone content would resolve the sentencing starting point stand-off.

Mr Smith suggested to the court: “Interrogation of the phone will reveal his limited involvement.”

Judge Fanning adjourned the case for a week in a bid to resolve the matter. In the meantime Ross remains remanded in custody.

“I know you are anxious to be sentenced because you want to know what release date will be so that you can at least work towards something positive.”

However, the judge said a short adjournment was in the interests of all. The case will next come before the court on September 9.