A MAN caught with 940 grams of cannabis has had drug charges adjourned to allow him to attend a specialist pain clinic.
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Paul Christopher McLean, 47, of Cobar, has pleaded guilty to charges of possessing and supplying a prohibited drug and driving with an illicit drug in his bloodstream.
Prosecution facts tendered to Dubbo Local Court said McLean was stopped by police conducting drug and alcohol testing at Coolongolook at 10.50pm on April 14.
Officers detected a strong smell of cannabis emanating from the interior of his Nissan Navara. A saliva test returned a positive result for THC (Delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol), the active component in cannabis.
When police searched the vehicle they found bags of cannabis, an electric blender with cannabis residue, a Cryovac food sealing machine and two rolls of Cryovac film.
McLean told police he purchased cannabis in bulk in Sydney "because it was cheaper".
McLean said he consumed about one ounce of cannabis a week to ease chronic back pain and used Cryovac to seal the drug in small packages to "prolong its life".
The court heard McLean had suffered serious injury in a surfing accident in Western Australia.
He had limited mobility, needed a walking stick and suffered constant pain.
McLean had been referred to the Magistrate's Early Referral Into Treatment (MERIT) drug and alcohol diversion program.
The court was told he had been in contact with a drug detoxification unit and needed time to see a pain specialist at Orange.
Magistrate Andrew Eckhold adjourned the charges to November 19 and allowed bail to continue.