Musician Pete Doherty was jailed for six months today by a court in London after pleading guilty to possession of cocaine.
The 32-year-old, who was due to be playing a concert in Glasgow tonight, was arrested in January last year by police investigating the suspected overdose death of heiress Robyn Whitehead.
The controversial singer, best known for his work with the Libertines and Babyshambles, has twice been jailed before and has repeatedly admitted possession of class A substances.
Doherty, of Camden High Street, north London, leaned forward in his seat as he was sentenced at east London’s Snaresbrook Crown Court but did not show any emotion as he was sentenced for the single count.
Judge David Radford said he had an “appalling record” of committing offences, having already made 13 other court appearances in the past.
His co-defendant Peter Wolfe (42), who had pleaded guilty to two counts of possession of cocaine and one count of supplying cocaine to Ms Whitehead, was sentenced to a total of 12 months in prison.
“The circumstances in which the committal of these offences which I have to deal with today is tragic," the judge said.
“Police became aware of the relevant evidence because of the investigation which followed the discovery of the sad death of a young woman who had been present at the address where the offences had been committed.
“The offences involved the social supply of crack cocaine in a crack cocaine pipe, which you handed to that person.
“I make it clear though, abundantly clear, that the young woman’s death was not caused by that supply of crack cocaine.
“Unhappily and tragically that woman died from the poisoning of another illegal Class A drug which she had chosen to take.
“The grief and loss to her family and friends caused by her death cannot and should not be sought in any way to be expiated by the sentence I pass today.”
Ms Whitehead (27) spent the last 10 days of her life creating a documentary about Doherty.
Outlining the case, prosecutor Alison Morgan said paramedics were called to Wolfe’s flat in Landmark Heights, Hackney, east London, at around 8pm on January 24th last year. They attempted to resuscitate Ms Whitehead but she was pronounced dead shortly after 8pm.
Toxicology reports found she had a combination of cocaine and heroin in her body and had died of heroin poisoning.
When police attended the address they seized a crack pipe along with other drug paraphernalia along with the video footage that Ms Whitehead had taken. Footage filmed on January 22nd inside the flat showed her in the flat with Wolfe and him passing her a crack pipe, which she then smoked.
She said Doherty later joined them and was also filmed smoking on the crack pipe and putting crack cocaine inside it.
She said the drugs offences to which the two men had been charged had been committed between January 22nd and that day but that the crack cocaine that Wolfe had supplied Ms Whitehead with could not have been what killed her.
Wearing a grey suit with waistcoat, a navy blue cravat and with a red handkerchief dangling out his top pocket, Doherty had whispered continually to his co-defendant as the background to the case was read out.
The pair, who were both clean-shaven but looked scruffy and dishevelled, were flanked by three security officers as they sat in the dock in the packed courtroom.
During mitigation Peter Ratliff, defending Doherty, said he was renowned for his drug abuse, adding: “It’s an offence which addicts commit every day of every year.”
He said of his client, who has fronted indie bands Libertines and Babyshambles and has recently been touring as a solo artist: “Any claim that this defendant somehow glamorises drug use is misguided.
“He takes no pleasure in his addiction. It’s one thing he’s said publicly he would not wish upon his worst enemy.
“He is acutely aware of the agonising nature of addiction. He has to live with the fact that when he receives publicity it’s almost entirely negative and that’s entirely for his actions.”
PA