A cannabis dealer "crossed a boundary" and began supplying Class A drugs as well, a court has heard.
Gavin Dinham was caught with a stash of half a kilo of weed in his garden shed and small quantities of cocaine and crack. Texts messages on his phone showed he had been involved in supplying the drugs. The 37-year-old had now been sent to prison meaning he will miss the birth of his child.
Swansea Crown Court heard that on the morning of February 10 last year police executed a search warrant the house Dinham shares with his partner in the Birchgrove area of the city.
Dyfed Thomas, prosecuting, said officers recovered 564g of cannabis from a shed in the garden of the property as well as a number of wraps of cocaine and crack, weighing scales, a "dealer's list" of monies owed, and a mobile phone. In the defendant's car police found £345 in cash.
The court heard the phone contained messages relating the supply of drugs including references to "W" – cocaine – and to "wash", which is a slang term for crack cocaine.
Check what crimes have been reported in your area:
Gavin Phillip Dinham, of Trewen Road, Birchgrove, Swansea, admitted possession of cannabis and cocaine with intent to supply . He has previous convictions for non-dwelling burglary, motoring offences, assaulting a police officer, and possession of crack cocaine.
David Singh, for Dinham, said the defendant accepts that "a boundary was crossed" when he had moved on from dealing cannabis to dealing Class A drugs. He said his client's partner was expecting their child but Dinham was realistic about his position and realised an immediate custodial sentence was inevitable.
Recorder Gregory Bull QC said it was clear the defendant's main concern had been dealing cannabis but there came a time when he began supply cocaine and crack cocaine too. He told Dinham that the courts take the supply of Class A drugs very seriously.
Giving the defendant credit for his guilty pleas the recorder sentenced him to eight months in prison for the cannabis offence and 30 months for the cocaine offence with the sentences to run concurrently. Dinham will serve half up to half of the 30 months in custody before being released on licence under the UK government's early release scheme to serve the remainder in the community.
