A MAN has been jailed for three years for manslaughter after he injected a friend with heroin causing his death.

Daniel Browning, 34, had admitted the charge at an earlier hearing.

At Mold Crown Court, Judge John Rogers QC told him: “You killed your friend Jason Wilkinson by injecting him with heroin.

“This case demonstrates, yet again, the terrible risks to the health of those who use heroin.”

The judge said he accepted it was the deceased who had provided the heroin which had brought about his death.

He warned Browning if he had been convicted after a trial by jury, he would have been jailed for five years.

But he had pleaded guilty, would receive full credit for doing so, and the judge said he also took into account his previous good character.

Browning, of Shields Court in Wrexham, admitted unlawfully killing Jason Stuart Wilkinson at an address in Waring Court in Wrexham, on November 21 last year.

The court heard how it emerged Mr Wilkinson had potentially lethal amounts of both methadone and heroin in his body.

Prosecutor Kim Halsall told the court Browning’s basis of plea was acceptable.

Browning claimed while he did inject heroin into Mr Wilkinson’s hand, it was the deceased’s own heroin.

It was the deceased who decided how much heroin he would have, and Browning said he felt under pressure to inject him.

Browning claimed he had seen Wilkinson take similar amounts before.

It was a combination of methadone and the injected heroin which killed him, but Browning was unaware the deceased had already taken methadone that day, the court heard.

Neither family had been aware they had been addicted to heroin.

Browning later told police Mr Wilkinson had slumped over as he had done before and he thought if he wanted to lie on the floor for an hour or two then it was his prerogative.

He had been OK on previous occasions and he did not think it was any different this time.

Browning took his spectacles off as he had done in the past, heard him breathing and believed he was all right.

The post-mortem examination showed the cause of death was respiratory failure caused by the overdose of heroin, combined with the high level of methadone in the body.

Defending, Maria Massellis-Brookes said the last thing in the world her client would have wanted to do was to harm his friend, who was an intelligent and talented person.

They had known each other for some 15 years and in recent times Browning had turned to him for his heroin supply.

The judge said in the end it was a straight forward sentencing matter.

“I have to sentence this young man for being responsible for the unlawful killing of another human being. That is the stark fact and the sentencing guidelines are very clear,” he said.