Youth ran 'sophisticated' drug dealing operation

Street dealer had cannabis worth nearly £1,000

A NEWBURY youth caught ‘street dealing’ cannabis on Christmas Day had nearly £1,000-worth of the drug, town magistrates heard.

The teenager was running a sophisticated operation, with lengthy lists of customers who owed him money and £500 in cash in a safe in his bedroom, the court was told last Thursday.

Helen Waite, prosecuting, said the 17-year-old, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, was stopped by police in Northbrook Street on December 25 last year and was found to have several ‘deal’ bags of cannabis on him.

He was arrested, the court heard, but it was not until officers searched his home that they realised the full extent of the youth’s criminal enterprise.

Ms Waite said: “There was £500 in cash in a safe; there was more cannabis and 50 or 60 empty ‘deal’ bags; there were digital scales.

“It all pointed to this defendant being involved in the supply of drugs.

“This was street dealing. His mobile phone was seized and officers trawled through 2,000 pages of text messages, including ‘tick’ lists, which showed he was concerned in the supply of drugs.”

She added: “More drugs, worth £870, were seized.

“The evidence shows he knew what he was doing. He knew what the drugs were and he knew the value of each package.

“This wasn’t a matter of sharing cannabis with a few friends. It was more sophisticated than that.”

Police also discovered the youth was handling stolen bicycles worth hundreds of pounds each, magistrates were told.

The youth admitted possessing cannabis with intent to supply and handling stolen goods, both on December 25 last year.

Steve Molloy, defending, said his client had “almost reached adulthood without troubling the police before.”

He acknowledged that a prison term would be inevitable if his client was a few months older, but added: “He is still a youth in the eyes of the law and falls to be sentenced in a different way.”

Mr Molloy went on: “He started smoking cannabis recreationally and thought he would make some easy money.

“He didn’t appreciate the seriousness of what he was doing.”

He pleaded for his client to be given a “last chance”.

Magistrates adjourned sentencing for pre-sentence reports to be prepared and the 17-year-old was meanwhile released on unconditional bail.