A MAN who was behind bars when his first child was born will miss the arrival of his second after being locked up again.

Scott Hine was jailed for 15 months for possessing criminal property – thousands of pounds belonging to a drug dealer.

Hine had been released from a one-year prison sentence for a similar offence only months before he was arrested last May.

Teesside Crown Court heard how the 26-year-old fled when police approached his car in Thornaby, near Stockton.

Hine threw away a package as he ran through a field in a desperate bid to escape, said Richard Parsell, prosecuting.

Officers retrieved the parcel from a hedge and were stunned to find thousands of pounds.

The court heard that more money was found in the footwell of Hine’s car, and the notes were laced with drugs.

When he was arrested, Hine, of Londonderry Road, Stockton, claimed the cash was his gambling winnings.

He later admitted that the £6,115 belonged to a drug-dealing friend, and he was taking it from one place to another.

The court heard that Hine was jailed in 2007 for possessing criminal property – £5,800 of drug money.

His barrister, Paul Abrahams, said Hine has since turned his back on crime, and wants to make an honest living.

Mr Abrahams said Hine has got a job with an engineering firm, and is preparing for the birth of his second child.

“He is a man who has not had much by the way of employment, perhaps through his own choice,” said Mr Abrahams.

“But he is now with an engineering company and it’s a great bound forward now he is engaged in work and can have money which is legitimate.”

He added: “He has a child with an ex-partner and he missed the birth because he was in custody, and one would have thought he would have learned his lesson.

“He foolishly embarked on this and now risks missing the birth of his second child with his new partner.”

Mr Abrahams urged Judge Tony Briggs to impose a suspended prison sentence and gave him letters from Hine’s partner and ex-girlfriend.

The judge told Hine: “In 2007, you received a clear warning that possessing criminal property is a serious offence.

“Relatively shortly after your release, you were involved in this particular matter when you were again in possession of a very substantial quantity of money, which quite clearly is the proceeds of serious crime.”