A graphic design graduate with a promising future blighted his career and brought shame on his family after he got involved in a class A drugs operation to earn cash before heading home to London, a court heard.

Yanick Mungu, 24, had finished a degree in 2019 when instead of heading straight back home to London he decided to stay on in Norwich and earn a bit of extra money.

Norwich Crown Court heard Mungu “became enshrined” with a group of drug dealers who used his premises in Ber Street, Norwich, as a “safe space” to store drugs and cash from the sale of drugs.

Danielle O’Donovan, prosecuting, said police attended the premises on February 29 this year for an unrelated matter when Mungu came to the door “nervous” and “shaking”.

Officers were able to see drugs and a pile of cash in the property and arrested Mungu.

Following a search of the flat £28,600 in cash was found together with wraps of drugs - cocaine and heroin - worth in excess of £10,000.

Mungu, of Ber Street, Norwich, appeared in court on Thursday (July 2) having admitted two counts of possessing a controlled drug of class A with intent and a further count of possession of criminal property on February 29 this year.

Jonathan Goodman, representing Mungu who he insisted should be given credit for his guilty pleas, said this was not a conventional county lines drugs case.

He said Mungu, who did not use drugs, had completed a three year degree but instead of returning back to London stayed in Norwich.

He reluctantly agreed that the group he became involved with could store illegal drugs at the flat he still had in the city.

Mr Goodman said his premises was used as a “safe space” for the group to store drugs and money from drug dealing.

He said Mungu had “blighted” his future career as a result of getting involved as bringing shame upon his family but now must “suffer the consequences”.

Sentencing Mungu to a total of 28 months in prison, Judge Anthony Bate said the defendant “had a promising future ahead of you” before “something went terribly wrong”.

Judge Bate said Mungu played a “significant role” in this trade which “ruins lives” and from which “evil people profit”.