A courier for a gang which sold cocaine on the streets has been jailed for six years.

Anthony Doyle, 48, was arrested after drugs squad officers discovered a storage container at a farm in Pevensey was being used to store cocaine and speed.

They set up covert cameras to watch the container rented by the gang at Churchlands Farm. Julian Woodbridge, prosecuting, said Doyle was recorded going to it on May 15 last year.

He said: "The following day officers secretly went into the container and discovered a substantial quantity of cocaine and amphetamines inside.

"There was half a kilo of cocaine and three kilos of amphetamines in plastic tubs inside a rucksack and plastic carrier bag.

"Together they had a lower end street value of at least £40,000."

Electronic scales for weighing drugs were found along with hydroponic equipment for growing cannabis plants.

Officers resealed the container and Doyle was again seen going into it on May 18 and May 19.

They searched the container again two days later and found the drugs had been removed.

Two weeks later Doyle and another man were seen removing the hydroponics equipment.

It was taken to Westfield Farm at Downash, Hailsham, where Doyle's car was seen a number of times. The farm was raided on July 1 and 40 cannabis plants were found growing in the attic.

The empty rucksack and carrier bag from the container were also found along with the plastic tubs they were kept in, which still had traces of the drugs on them.

Mr Woodbridge said police went to Doyle's home in Fletcher Close, Hailsham, to arrest him but he was not there.

He was caught in September in Richmond Road, Eastbourne, where he had been hiding.

He later admitted possessing cocaine and amphetamines with intent to supply and cultivating cannabis.

Anthony Dunkells, defending, said Doyle was an addict who received cocaine from the drugs gang for acting as a courier.

Mr Dunkells said: "He was a successful roofer living in London until the death of his mother and father in 1995.

"His partner left him for his best friend and he discovered at the same time that his 11-year-old child was not his own. He fell off a ladder and hurt his back which meant he was unable to work.

"As a result he suffered a complete breakdown and went from being a successful man to relying on alcohol and Class A drugs."

Doyle, who went to live with his sister in Hailsham after she discovered him living rough, admitted the charges in December. He appeared at Lewes Crown Court for sentence yesterday.