Heroin-taking grandad hid blood-covered needle in supermarket loaf of bread

A mother opened a loaf of bread to make a sandwich for her son only to discover it contained a blood-covered needle used by a heroin-taking grandad. The mother had taken two slices from the pack of Roberts wholemeal bread, which she had bought from a local Tesco store, when she made the shocking discovery.

It emerged the dirty needle had been pushed through the loaf’s plastic wrapper by David Rodgers when he visited the shop with his wife. Rodgers, 61, had been desperate to dispose of the needle so his wife wouldn’t know he was back on the drug. He had already used it for a heroin ‘fix’ before he hid it in the bread in Tesco Extra, Pendleton, Lancashire, on December 1. A court heard the woman, who bought it later that day, was left ‘alarmed and distressed’ when she noticed the needle while making the sandwich for her 10-year-old son.



She handed it in to police, who used DNA tracing to track down Rodgers. He pleaded guilty to contaminating the loaf with intent to cause public alarm at Manchester magistrates’ court. The case was adjourned for pre-sentence reports. Rodgers, of Cumbrae Gardens, Salford, was warned he could face jail. Dominic Geelan, prosecuting, said there was no suggestion Rodgers had any sort of grudge against Tesco.

He said Rodgers had kept the needle in his pocket for two days after injecting himself with heroin. The court heard Rodgers told police: “It’s hard to believe what I did, being a father and grandad.” Mr Geelan said Rodgers was at a loss to explain his actions. He added: “The only reason he could think of was that he didn’t want his wife to know he was using heroin again.” Rodgers was said to be aware of the ‘hurt and distress’ caused to the mother and her family. He accepted he could have thrown the needle on the floor or under shelving in the store.