Alleged gang member Jakai Harford’s prison sentence was increased by 15 months yesterday, after he admitted possessing cannabis while in Westgate.Harford, 29, previously named by police as a high-ranking member of the 42 gang, committed the offence less than two weeks after he was jailed for five years for drug dealing in September last year.Prosecutor Susan Mulligan told Magistrates’ Court officers found 4.76 grams of cannabis in his underwear on September 27, 2011, after conducting a search of his cell.Harford said he had been given the drugs by prisoner friends who were “happy to see me” after his prolonged spell in a high security section of the jail came to an end.Acting Magistrate Ed Bailey condemned the practice of drug use in Westgate, and said Harford’s sentence should be extended as a deterrent to other prisoners.When Harford was jailed last year, for possessing 118 grams of cannabis and 47 grams of cocaine with intent to supply, Puisne Judge Carlisle Greaves described him as a “well organised drug trader and businessman”.He has twice been shot, while his brother, Kumi Harford, was shot dead in December 2009.Harford’s lawyer Marc Daniels pleaded for leniency yesterday, saying his client accepted the drugs in a moment of weakness, having been in lock down 23 hours a day for nine months ahead of his trial last year.“He’s lost a brother as well as many friends and neighbours as a result of gun crime and gang violence,” Mr Daniels told the court.“Notwithstanding why he’s in prison, and notwithstanding his lifestyle that’s led him to come to prison, he’s still human, still subject to the challenges that any of us go through in our lives.“Not many of us know what it’s like to be in prison and exposed to certain individuals who may want to take your life.”However, Ms Mulligan responded: “There’s a reason why Mr Harford was on 23-hour lock down, because of his own involvement in the gang life.“In the community Mr Harford was in a sort of lock down in his own home, which had big fortress walls.“His brother had been shot and killed. He had been shot. There were concerns for his safety.”Harford said: “It was a spur of the moment. I was in maximum security for nine months. Everybody was happy to see me. I told the officer that someone had just gave them to me.“Since then I have come a long way. I have completed all my classes in jail, including my mandatory drug test.”Mr Bailey noted Harford’s latest offence was just 13 days after his sentencing, telling the court: “After his sentencing you would have thought that he’s turning over a new leaf, but he’s still getting involved. It didn’t impact on him in any way.“This court has responsibility that the sentence I put to you must be a deterrent to people using drugs in prison.”