EastEnders star Richard Blackwood's brother jailed for dealing cocaine

Justin Davenport2 June 2016
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The brother of EastEnders star Richard Blackwood has been jailed for possessing cocaine with intent to supply the Class A drug.

Marcus Blackwood, 36, was starting a four year sentence today after pleading guilty to one count of drug dealing.

He was stopped by police in the City of London but ran from officers after being asked to get out of his silver Mercedes car.

Blackwood, of Beckenham, knocked an officer to the ground and was then caught on CCTV throwing a package into an underground car park on West Smithfield during a foot chase through the City streets.

Jailed: Marcus Blackwood was sentenced to four years in prison
City of London Police

Officers recovered a bag which contained 10 wraps of cocaine and Blackwood was arrested on suspicion of possession with intent to supply of class A drugs.

Police found five more wraps of cocaine in his underpants and 12 wraps of cocaine and other drugs paraphernalia hidden in a shoe box in his flat.

In total the drugs were estimated to be worth more than £30,000.

Blackwood is the younger brother of EastEnders actor Richard who plays Vincent Hubbard in the BBC soap.

Comedian, rapper and TV presenter Blackwood only joined the Albert Square cast last year and was nominated for Best Newcomer at the 2016 National Television Awards.

Since then Vincent Hubbard has become a major character and built up a following in the series.

His character has been mixed up in crime and firearms and the London-born actor said recently : “The thing about Vincent that I love is that he’s very human. He’s got a dark side but he only acts that way with people who are in the same realm as him.”

Richard Blackwood with his brother Marcus (right) and another man in a picture posted on Instagram

Immediately before he won the EastEnders role, Blackwood had success on the West End stage in the musical Shrek where he played Donkey alongside stars Nigel Harman, Amanda Holden and Kimberley Walsh.

The actor has posted an image on Instagram of him, a friend and his brother with the caption : “With my boy @thecharliekenny and Little brother Marcus! Power Moves!!”

A spokesman for the actor said the case involving his brother was a private matter and he did not want to comment.

Marcus Blackwood was jailed for four years after pleading guilty at the Old Bailey yesterday.

The court heard that when police searched Marcus Blackwood’s home they discovered a Russell & Bromley shoe box in a wardrobe containing a set of scales, 12 wraps of cocaine, cutting agents, Ethylone and other drug paraphernalia.

Images on a CCTV camera released by City Police show the drug dealer being pursued through the streets by a plain clothes officer after his car was stopped in Long Lane near the Barbican Tube station at 9.15pm on February 11.

Speaking after the court case Detective Inspector Rob Stirling said : “Due to the weight of evidence and the tenacity of Detective Constable Thomas Hayball, who gave chase and detained him, Blackwood had no choice but to plead guilty to supplying drugs.

““The City of London attracts many people to its thriving night time economy, which we welcome. We want people to come here to have a good time but at the same time we want them to remain safe.

“We have a zero tolerance to drugs being used or sold here and will continue to be proactive in our approach to stop this from happening.”

The court case came as London was named the cocaine capital of Europe for the second year running.

The city saw an increase in traces of the Class A substance – one of few cities in the world to see such a rise - according to an official EU study.

Analysis by the EU’s drug monitoring agency showed the average daily concentration of cocaine in London’s wastewater was 909mg per 1,000 people last year - up from 737mg in 2014.

The next closest level was 642mg in Amsterdam. When weekend samples only are taken into account, the concentration for London rises to 1044, according to the figures.

The analysis, which took population into account, also found Londoners were among the heaviest users of party drug ecstasy – which is said to be making a comeback.

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