A nightclub owner turned drug dealer has been jailed after police found cocaine, MDMA and cash at his home, a court heard. Richard Holland, 48, was sentenced at Swansea Crown Court, while his partner, Rebecca Lewis, 44, received a suspended sentence for her part in the dealing operation.
On July 4, police executed a warrant at the defendants' home in Swansea. A search of the property and the defendants turned up a total of 8g of cocaine and £2,650 in cash, along with a "book safe" containing weighing scales, empty snap bags, and 230 MDMA or ecstasy tablets. The defendants provided officers with the PINs for their phones, and on the devices officers found messages showing both were involved in the supply of cocaine, with Lewis also receiving directions from Holland.
Court hears of religious conversion
Holland's barrister, Ian Ibrahim, said his client attends bible study sessions and goes to church three times a week in prison. He said Holland had told him: "This is the best I have felt for 10 years."
Ibrahim said the former Cefn Hengoed School pupil had worked in a range of jobs including in call centres, the building trade, and in the hospitality sector, and at one stage had owned his own nightclub. The barrister said his client had been a user of both cocaine and ecstasy, and his use of the drugs spiralled as he dealt with the loss and grief of a number of bereavements.
Sentencing
Holland and Lewis, of Pentregethin Road, Portmead, Swansea, had both previously pleaded guilty to being concerned in the supply of cocaine and possession of criminal property, namely money. Holland had also pleaded guilty to possession of ecstasy with intent to supply. Holland has 10 previous convictions for 16 offences including producing cannabis in 2017. Lewis has no previous convictions.
John Allchurch, for Lewis, said references before the court spoke of the mother-of-three as a "kind, compassionate person", and said going through the court process had been a "painful and traumatic experience" for her. He invited the court to find that a term of immediate imprisonment was not inevitable in her case.
With one-third discounts for their guilty pleas, recorder David Harris sentenced Holland to 32 months in prison, and Lewis to 16 months suspended for two years. Lewis was also ordered to complete a rehabilitation course and a mental health treatment requirement, and to pay a fine of £150.
