A teenager who hid drugs inside a confectionery egg has been sentenced to two years in custody.

Josh Mason was near his home in Hazel Grove, Oswestry, last month when officers recovered a Kinder Surprise egg containing 40 wraps of heroin and crack cocaine. Further amounts of drugs worth around £2,000 were later found at the 19-year-old’s home.

At Shrewsbury Crown Court last week, the defendant was given two years at a young offenders’ institution having admitted two charges of possession of Class A drugs with intent to supply.

Judge Jim Tindal said Mason had been given youth custody last year and it was not long after his release that he was involved in drug dealing.

“This was a conscious choice by you to make easy money. Bluntly, you should have known better,” he told the teenager.

The court was told Mason was addicted to cannabis and was involved in dealing Class A drugs in the Oswestry area.

Paul Spratt, prosecuting, said that having recovered the egg, officers searched the defendant’s home and a vehicle parked outside. A further 210 wraps of heroin and crack cocaine were found in the dining room.

“They were plainly for onward sale,” he said.

Danny Smith, for Mason, said his client had been exploited by other people in a chain through pressure and coercion.

“There was some degree of intimidation by giving him the option of either being involved in this or face the consequences that would follow,” he said.

He said Mason, who now lives in the Liverpool area, had started smoking cannabis at the age of nine or 10 and was smoking £80 worth a day, was “extremely remorseful” for his actions.