Man who hid cannabis in eggcup and teapot jailed

Saturday 06 January 2018

A 53-year-old man who pleaded guilty to possession of cannabis with intention to supply after Police and Customs officers found 2.8kg of cannabis and £30,000 hidden in his house has been sentenced to 18 months in prison by the Royal Court.

Daryl James Davies had hidden smaller quantities of resin around his house as well as cocaine and MDMA tablets.

Officers found the 'commercial' quantities of cannabis resin in a former stable outbuilding on the property in St Lawrence. They were kept in bars in two different bags and were worth up to £52,000.

Officers also found several small amounts of the resin hidden in an eggcup, a teapot, tupperware boxes and zipper bags, around the house and outbuildings. Three MDMA tablets were found and 12mg of cocaine were also discovered hidden in glass jars and boxes.

Bundles of cash were also recovered during the search, amounting to a total of £21,760.

Davies was absent from the property during the search, and was later arrested on a building site where he was working. Another £7,800 in cash was found in a shopping bag in his vehicle, but Davies said he didn't know anything about it. Upon his arrest, he was asked if he would like to volunteer the location of any drugs at his home address. He told officers a couple of kilos could be found in a tool bag in the stables, not knowing they had already found the bag.

Later the same day, Davies admitted that the cash was connected to the drugs and that he had been selling bars and smaller amounts. He said he was himself a heavy cannabis user and maintained his partner was unaware of either the drugs or the cash. 

Pictured: Davies had £21,760 hidden in various locations around his house and other outbuildings.

Crown Advocate Richard Pedley told Court that Davies had a good working record, a stable life as well as a supportive partner and a number of references. He added, however, that there were no exceptional circumstances in his case to avoid a custodial sentence, given that Davies was "actively engaged in drug supply."

Having estimated that Davies made over £68,000 of profit by selling drugs, the Crown Advocate suggested a confiscation order of over £47,500, which the Defence didn't oppose.

Advocate Ian Jones, defending, told the Court that the starting point of three-and-a-half years suggested by the Crown was slightly too high and suggested three years instead.

He said that Davies' case was not one of "true commercial drug dealing", as Davies had not acted commercially, but to supply friends. "He is not a commercial drug dealer in the conventional sense," Advocate Jones noted. He added that Davies had cooperated throughout the investigation as much as he possibly could, even when it wasn't in his interest.

He described Davies as a "lovely committed family man" who worked hard all his life and especially for the past 24 years during which he had run his own business in which he employed members of the community.

Pictured: The Royal Court ordered the confiscation of over £47,500 from the money Davies earned through drug-trafficking.

Advocate Jones told Court that Davies regretted the impact the case has had on his family, adding: "He fully regrets putting his partner in the position he has put her in." He noted that Davies fully grasped the consequences of his actions, to which the Bailiff, Sir William Bailhache replied: "Apparently not enough that he would give up cannabis."

Concluding his address, Advocate Jones told Court that it was rare for the Court to see "someone of his character, engagement, and with such a generous contribution to the community." He said a shorter prison sentence would therefore be "all the better for the lives of those he impacts on and continues to impact on."

Returning his sentence, the Bailiff, who sat with Jurats Pamela Pitman and Paul Nicolle, said that the starting point of three and half years was the right one. He said: "Given the combination of the amount of cannabis and cash put together, we think this is an appropriate assessment of your involvement in drug trafficking."

He nonetheless agreed that Davies had "very considerable mitigation" given his early guilty plea, full admissions and the assistance he gave in relation to the financial investigation.

He told Davies: "This is said for your benefit. We take the remorse to be completely genuine (...) but it doesn't seem to extend to the realisation that dealing cannabis is illegal. You need to take note of that in the future."

The Bailiff subsequently reduced the overall sentence to 18 months. He also ordered for the drugs to be forfeited and destroyed.