A DRUG courier delivered more than £36,000 worth of cannabis resin to an associate during a rendezvous in Port Glasgow — unaware they were being watched by police.

Andrew McLaughlin took a cardboard box containing 130 'bars' of the illegal substance from the rear of a white van and placed it in the boot of Stefan Bednarek's car on a residential street.

But the unwitting pair didn't realise that officers were carrying out a wide-ranging surveillance operation on their activities and they later seized the consignment after it was driven away for onward supply.

McLaughlin, 33, of the Port's Rona Avenue, has been told to expect a prison sentence for his involvement in the scheme after he pleaded guilty to supplying the sizeable haul to Bednarek.

Greenock Sheriff Court heard how police had been monitoring the van's movements and the actions of McLaughlin and two other men within the vehicle as part of a larger investigation into criminal activity.

The van — which had travelled from the Port Glasgow to Glasgow and back again — made a final stop in Oronsay Avenue, just a stone's throw from McLaughlin's home, and Bednarek's red Mercedes drew up behind it.

Prosecutor Saud Ul Hassan said: "Officers observed Stefan Bednarek exiting the Mercedes and the accused placed a weighted cardboard box in the boot of the car.

"The two men engaged in a conversation and then Bednarek drove away.

"As the accused re-entered the van the red Mercedes became the subject of the surveillance."

The court was told that the car eventually stopped at a location in Glasgow and Bednarek was detained for a search.

A total of 13 kilos of cannabis resin with a potential street value of £36,400 was within the box. The consignment was made up of 130 bars of resin each weighing 100 grams.

Bednarek was prosecuted at Glasgow Sheriff Court and pleaded guilty to his involvement in the enterprise in May last year.

McLaughlin's lawyer, Aidan Gallagher, said: "A surveillance operation was in place but not in respect of Mr McLaughlin but in respect of one of the other men in the van.

"Mr McLaughlin gets out of the van and is asked to put the box into the boot of the Mercedes.

"It is fair to say that until that point Mr McLaughlin did not feature in the police investigation."

Sheriff Derek Hamilton interjected: "But he has pleaded guilty to supplying cannabis resin, not to putting a box in the boot of a car."

Solicitor Mr Gallagher asked for his client's bail to be continued ahead of a sentencing hearing next month, stating that he has not re-offended and has only one previous conviction at justice of the peace court level.

He told the court that McLaughlin — who committed the offence on April 26 2016 — suffers from sleep apnoea and has to use an oxygen mask, adding: "His mother requires to check on him during the night."

Sheriff Hamilton told McLaughlin: "It is almost inevitable that this matter will result in a custodial sentence, so you may wish to make appropriate arrangements for any healthcare issues that you have. I will allow you bail meantime."

Sentence has been deferred until July 11 for a background report.