A young drug addict was found with more than 100 wraps of heroin and crack cocaine after he was stopped by police. He was found with drugs again two years later while on police bail.
Brynley Gardener, 20, was first stopped by police on May 20, 2021, after he was seen running from the scene of an incident in Cardiff. He was searched and admitted to having a large amount of drugs on his person.
A sentencing hearing at Newport Crown Court on Wednesday heard 106 wraps of heroin and crack cocaine were retrieved from the defendant's waistband. Police also recovered £748 and 4g of cannabis. Gardener was taken to the police station and interviewed but answered "no comment".
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Prosecutor Megan Jones said the defendant was stopped a second time on September 16 last year in Broadway, Adamsdown, after attempting to ride off on a mountain bike. He was taken to the floor and he appeared to reach into his trousers to conceal or retrieve something.
He was handcuffed and searched and found in possession of an iPhone and £45. Gardener was taken to custody and in a further search he was found with 31 wraps of crack cocaine and nine wraps of heroin in his underwear. He told police: "They're not even mine".
Gardener, of Singleton Road, Splott, later pleaded guilty to possession with intent to supply controlled drugs of Class A and B. The court heard he was of previous good character.
In mitigation Martha Smith-Higgins said there had been a significant delay in the initial case reaching court which was not the defendant's fault. The defence barrister said Gardener performed the role of a "custodian". She said the drugs were delivered to him prepared for sale and he was told where to go, collected money from customers, and the money was collected from him.
Ms Smith-Higgins said her client acted under direction, had no influence on those above him in the chain, and had little to no expectation of financial gain. She said the defendant was a heavy user of crack cocaine and was paid with £20-worth of the drug. The barrister said Gardener was stabbed in 2021, which affected him physically and mentally.
Sentencing, Judge Paul Hobson said: "Had you remained out of trouble then there would have been powerful mitigation based on delay. However that offending does not stand on its own.... This matter is too serious to be dealt with by anything other than an immediate custodial sentence."
Gardener was sentenced to 34 months of detention in a young offenders' institute. He will serve half the sentence in custody before he is released to serve the remainder on licence.
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