THE partner of a convicted drug dealer has been ordered to pay back more than £10,000 - or face six months behind bars.

Prosecutors say Michelle Hart "turned a blind eye" when her then-boyfriend Pasquelino Mazzuca became involved in a £3m cocaine trafficking ring.

Detectives found regular large amounts of money were being deposited in their joint bank account.

An estimated £10,000 plus was moved into Hart's personal bank account around this time.

Minshull Street Crown Court heard that officially Hart was a dog walker and Mazzuca apparently a struggling electrician.

Prosecutors insisted she must have been aware of her partner's criminal associations, given the cash going through their accounts.

But Mazzuca was involved in a major cocaine distribution network, with accomplice Alexander Hepworth, which saw him travelling to Plymouth and Harwich, and taking delivery of drugs directly off arriving boats.

One WhatsApp message between the pair also discussed supplying a firearm and ammunition.

Investigators estimate at least 30kg of cocaine was trafficked across the country between late 2018 and October 2019, with an estimated street value of £3m.

The drugs were often transported hidden inside tubs of e45 moisturising cream.

Mazzuca, then 53, of Holden Avenue, Ramsbottom, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply cocaine and possession of ecstasy with intent to supply, and was sentenced to 11 years and two months imprisonment last year. Hepworth, of Alden Road, Helmshore, to 16 years and nine months.

Hart, then 50, also appeared before a judge in June, after admitting to a charge of possession of criminal property and was handed a 12 month suspended prison sentence with a 10 day rehabilitation activity requirement and a curfew.

An investigation under the Proceeds of Crime Act was triggered as a result of her case, which saw her brought back to court this week.

The benefit she gained from her criminal activities was estimated at £10,788 and she had funds of more than £46,000 available.

A judge made a confiscation order in the sum of £10,788 - with a six-month term of imprisonment in default of payment.