A DRUG dealer who tried to use fake cash at a Bicester Village shop before being caught by police with 16 wraps of heroin and a lock knife has been jailed.

Danny McClements, of Towan Avenue, Fishermead, Milton Keynes, had tried to use the fake £20 bank notes at the Hugo Boss outlet on November 25 last year.

Oxford Crown Court heard at his sentencing on Friday how security staff were alerted to the counterfeit money being used and called police.

When they arrived at the designer outlet off Pingle Drive they arrested him and discovered a cocktail of drugs as well as the knife.

He had 16 wraps of heroin, carrying a street value of roughly £320, as well as quantities of crack cocaine, cocaine and MDMA - a form of ecstasy.

The total haul of drugs would have netted him about £480, the court heard.

While in custody police also found him to be in possession of a lock knife.

McClements had already pleaded guilty to possessing the counterfeit currency - three £20 notes, possession with intent to supply the heroin, simple possession of MDMA and cocaine, and possession of a bladed article.

In mitigation, Kellie Enever said her client had been homeless for some time and had fallen into drug problems.

She said: "This man has had quite a difficult time. He would describe himself as being homeless from the age of 16 and the only identification he had was that of his birth certificate.

"So being homeless he found it very difficult to get a job and this was a vicious cycle."

She added that now he had found employment at a Waitrose warehouse and things were looking more positive for him.

Sentencing, Judge Maria Lamb said that the offence of supplying drugs was so serious she had no option but to jail him.

She said: "You are somebody who has involved himself in the supply of class A drugs and there can really only be one sentence for that.

"Dealing in drugs just supports the misery that you yourself have experienced."

He was jailed for 32 months for the supply of heroin to run concurrently with 12 months for the counterfeit currency, 1 month each for possessing ecstasy and cocaine, and then an additional six months to run consecutively for possessing the knife, totalling 38 months.