Police are looking for a Newton Aycliffe man who was convicted of drugs offences and has gone on the run.
Three men were convicted of being part of a cocaine deal worth £58,000 that took place in a Darlington pub car park.
One of the trio, Paul Baveridge, 30, of Pemberton Road in Aycliffe, failed to attend Teesside Crown Court on Monday and a warrant is now out for his arrest.
He was convicted in his absence of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs and Durham Police are now hunting him.
There were sobs from the public gallery in court when Blake Stubbs, 23 and Alex Howe, 22, were also found guilty of the same charge following the incident last spring.
Stubbs, also of Pemberton Road, and Howe, of no fixed abode, were both remanded in custody despite bail requests from their representatives.
Judge Stephen Ashurst said granting the pair bail would only give them ‘false hope’ in terms of sentencing.
Their cases have been adjourned to allow pre-sentence reports to be prepared which is expected to take around three weeks.
The jury failed to deliver a unanimous verdict on Ayaz Ismail, 36 of Brixton Road, Preston, and they are due to return to court in a bid to reach an agreement.
Two other men, Daniel Field, 29, of Station Road, Durham, and Oliver Pilkington, 25, of Ley Street, Accrington, admitted being part of the conspiracy at an earlier hearing.
Throughout the course of the trial, which began at the end of July, the court heard details of the drug deal which involved almost half a kilo of cocaine valued at £57,840.
The cocaine had been driven across from Lancashire where it was intended to be sold on the streets for £80 per gram.
But the group was being watched by undercover police officers who seized the drugs and £14,930 in cash.
