Barrymore fined €910 over cocaine found at accident
The TV star, once one of Britain’s highest-paid entertainers, was arrested in the early hours last month after officers spotted a Citroen DS3 that had been damaged in an accident and found him at the scene.
Appearing in the dock, the 59-year-old admitted possessing the drug and was fined a total of £780 (€910) at Ealing Magistrates’ Court in west London.
After giving his real name of Michael Parker, he listened intently as prosecutor Sally Peters told of his behaviour on November 22.
Police officers approached him when they discovered the scene on The Vale in Acton, west London, she said.
Asked who had been driving the vehicle, he replied “I am not answering you”, the court heard.
Then, in an expletive-laden outburst, he went on: “Don’t you think I’ve had enough fucking shit from you lot over the years? I know the law.”
Arrested and taken to a police custody suite, he tried to conceal what looked like a white substance in his mouth, Ms Peters said.
“He refused to spit it out, was strip-searched and a rock of cocaine was found in his pocket,” she told the court.
A test found him positive for the class A drug.
Barrymore’s lawyer, Richard Gowthorpe, reminded the court that the quantity of the drug involved had been described as “a very small amount” and that the entertainer had apologised to the police for his behaviour.
The court heard that Barrymore had been seeing a drugs worker since the night of the incident and was making “very good progress”.
Barrymore was also addressing his alcohol use and had been attending Alcoholics Anonymous meetings.
