THE partner of a man who masterminded a Yorkshire cocaine trafficking ring has been spared jail for allowing him to use her family home as a “warehouse for drugs”.

Julie Firth, 49, of Farfield Crescent, Buttershaw, was found guilty by a jury of having knowingly permitted her home, where she lived with her two children aged ten and 13, to be used for the supply of cocaine.

The offending, between April and August 2017, was brought to an abrupt end on August 10 last year when police raided the address and seized bags of cocaine, £8,000 in cash and numerous phones.

Just hours before the police raid, Firth had handed over a bag of cocaine to John Lowcock at the request of Richard Brown, who she was in a relationship with.

Lowcock took that bag to an address in Doncaster, which when searched by police contained packages of cocaine worth £50,000.

Firth had denied knowing that drugs were being stored at her home, but was found guilty by a jury in November.

Judge David Hatton QC said there was “overwhelming evidence” against Firth, a medical secretary.

He said: “You were allowing Richard Brown, with whom you had a relationship and was the father of your two youngest children, to store a considerable quantity of cocaine at your home.

“You yourself, at his request, handed over a bag containing approximately 1kg of cocaine to a co-conspirator in his absence.

“This endured for four months, it was not short lived. You deliberately relegated the interests of your children below your allegiance to Richard Brown by allowing him to use your house as a warehouse for cocaine.”

Brown was jailed in September for ten years for his role in the drug ring.

Bradford Crown Court was told Firth had no previous convictions, and was previously of good character.

Judge Hatton said he believed the “prospects of further offending are remote”, and the case “will have brought great shame, and rightly so”.

Firth was also ordered to undertake 180 hours of unpaid work, and given a four month electronically monitored curfew.