A PREGNANT mum-of-two who turned to dealing in cocaine to make ends meet has been spared jail.

Melanie Bridge, 26, of Mitchell Road, Poole, admitted to police that the drugs were hidden inside clothes in her wardrobe when police raided her home on September 21 last year.

During a search of her home, Bridge told officers: "I don't take drugs myself. I just do it for money.

"I'm in such debt and a friend offered me a way out."

Officers discovered a set of scales, empty, plastic, re-sealable bags and bags of white powder, which were later analysed and found to be cocaine with a street value of £580.

Bridge was arrested and taken to Poole Police Station, where she told officers that she had separated from her partner and accrued a lot of debt through rent and having to pay the deposit on a new address.

She told police she had made £1,200 selling cocaine and had intended to stop dealing when she had cleared her debt.

Bridge, who is due to give birth in May, pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity and has no previous convictions, the court heard.

Recorder Richard Onslow said: "Dealing in class A drugs is the scourge of our society today and people who do it normally go to prison.

"You dealt in coke for about nine weeks. You did so because of your financial circumstances. You were told how to do it by someone else. I take all that into account."

Bridge was handed a 12-month prison sentence suspended for 18 months and a two-year supervision requirement.