Man jailed for drug dealing at football match
A man has been jailed for 28 months for possessing and supplying drugs at the home ground of Newtown Football Club.
Robert Edwards had £1,100 worth of cocaine and £205 of other drugs on him when he was stopped for acting suspiciously in the toilets at the ground before the FAW Trophy Final between Caernarfon FC and Kilvey Fords FC on April 13.
Mold Crown Court heard that Edwards, 22, had been supplying drugs to people at the match before security at the ground alerted the police.
Edwards had admitted possessing 21.98g of cocaine; supplying an unknown quantity of cocaine; supplying an unknown quantity of two class C drugs, and possession with intent to supply 6.39g of class C drugs at an earlier hearing at Mold Crown Court, but appeared for sentencing yesterday.
Judge Niclas Parry described Edwards, of Penderry Road, Swansea, as a "well-known source of drugs" and sentenced him to 28 months on each of the four charges to run concurrently with each other.
He said: "You were out of work for a month before being caught and found a new source of income – Class A and C drugs. It is accepted by you that you supplied people known to you with drugs and you would have been prepared to sell to anyone.
"These drugs were being brazenly supplied at a family friendly football match. But I have heard that this is out of character, you are an industrious man and an able sportsman who played rugby to county level.
"But here we have a man who is a well-known source of drugs."
David Mainstone, prosecuting, said Police Community Support Officers were called to the ground after three men were seen acting suspiciously in the toilets by security staff.
He said: "Police officers were then called and carried out a search in which 25 tablets were found. He was arrested and the defendant was taken to the police station for questioning and further searches in which bags of white powder were found.
"In total, the cocaine had a street value of £1,100 and the tablets £205."
He added: "His phone was seized and there were a large number of incriminating text messages. One in particular showed that he suggested he could sell 4,000 tablets for £10,000."
Simon Rogers, for Edwards, said his client had entered an early guilty plea and deeply regretted the incident.
