Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Wales Online
Wales Online
National
Philip Dewey

Dealer's wife complained about his drug lifestyle on messages found by police

A cocaine dealer whose messages were found by police on the phone of another dealer had been admonished by his wife for his drug lifestyle.

Kaine Kerr, 30, of Caerphilly, was discovered using a burner phone to send out "text bombs" to customers advertising cocaine, which said: "Around all weekend, all hours".

After police arrested and seized the phone of another drug dealer they found messages baring Kerr's name and were able to attribute the number to him. Messages had been sent to 152 customers on occasions indicating a wide client base.

Read more: Go here to read all the latest stories from the courts in Wales

A sentencing hearing at Cardiff Crown Court on Thursday heard the defendant was arrested on May 4 and the burner phone used to send the messages was retrieved.

It was also found to contain a tick list which indicated he was owed in £1,880 by customers he had sold drugs to.

Prosecutor Josh Scouller said an iPhone was also seized which contained messages from his wife which indicated she knew about his drug dealing and was "complaining about his behaviour".

Following his arrest Kerr initially claimed he worked as an unlicensed taxi driver and bought alcohol in bulk to sell on for a profit to friends. He also told officers he was a heavy user of cocaine, diazepam, and Valium.

The defendant, of Bryn Aber, Abertridwr, later pleaded guilty to being concerned in the supply of Class A drugs between October 2020 and May this year.

Check crime reports where you live:

Defence barrister William Bebb said father-of-three Kerr described a "perfect storm" due to him suffering from mental health issues and turning to drugs in order to cope.

Mr Bebb added: "He was taking up to 7g of cocaine per week and his bill was amounting to £400 a week. This led to a drug debt which led him to dealing and it spiralled out of control."

Sentencing, Recorder IWL Jones said: "Class A drugs are a serious problem in our society and how they destroy lives and destroy families. That is exactly what has happened in this particular case... Once you get involved with people further up the chain it's extremely difficult to get out of it."

Kerr was sentenced to 33 months imprisonment.

To get the latest news from WalesOnline sent straight to your email inbox, including our regular Crime and Punishment updates, click here .

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.