KEY POINTS:
When Auckland man Mark Sopp took $2200 on a night out, he intended buying LSD, going to a casino, then finishing his evening at a brothel.
But when stopped by police in the early hours of August 12 last year, he was carrying 31 tabs of the hallucinogen,
15 plastic baggies and the cash.
Sopp, now 28, appeared in the High Court at Auckland this week to answer, at trial, a charge of possession of LSD for supply.
He admitted possession of the drug, but disputed that he was a supplier.
Sopp, a chef, told his lawyer Robin Brown he had stolen the drugs in an opportunistic theft from under his dealer's nose.
He told the court he had wanted to get "as wasted as possible" after separating from his girlfriend. "I bought some acid and I took it and I started sitting down and drinking with my dealer."
After about 30 minutes, Sopp said he noticed his dealer's stash tin, which he stole at the first opportunity. He then caught a taxi into central Auckland intending to visit Sky City, but instead met up with a friend and went to a Ponsonby bar.
He could not say how long he was there, "because of how intoxicated I was, and the effects of the LSD were starting to take hold".
The two were later stopped by police while driving on Grey's Ave, heading for Sky City. The drugs were discovered during a search.
Sopp denied a claim by prosecutor Tiffany Robertson the drugs and cash were from his own drug-dealing business.
He said the $2200 was six months' savings originally intended for repairs to his car, which he decided to blow on an all-or-nothing night out. "I was completely heartbroken, so I decided to go out and get as smashed as possible."
He told the court he had spent $90 for three tabs of LSD, which he would take over the course of two days.
He refused to name his dealer. "It's not worth my safety to tell you his name."
Mrs Robertson said it was strange he would steal drugs from a man he was too scared to identify, and questioned the need to take more than $2000 on a night out, even if visiting a brothel.
"It depends on how many times you engage," he replied.
"It's a pretty big night however many times you engage," Mrs Robertson said.
Sopp reckoned it all depended on how much "stamina" one had.
It took a jury almost six hours to find Sopp guilty of possession of LSD for supply.
He will be sentenced on October 2.
