Lucas Byrne (Image: South Wales Police)
Last Updated: 1 hour ago
A drug dealer who attempted to evade detection by repeatedly switching the sim card for his cocaine supply line between different handsets has been sentenced to three years in prison.
Lucas Byrne, 22, of Clos Holm View, Barry, had already served time for a previous conviction for possession of cocaine with intent to supply – for which he received 24 months’ detention in December 2022 – and was still on licence from that sentence when he resumed dealing.
The LZ line
Cardiff Crown Court heard that officers had been investigating an active drugs line known as the LZ line. Prosecutor Rose Glanville told the court detectives worked through “various levels of attribution” to identify Byrne as the person behind it, including call data, references to LZ found in messages on other people’s phones, and numbers linked to social media accounts including Instagram.
The court was told the sim card associated with the drugs line had been moved between different handsets on multiple occasions – a “common technique” used by dealers trying to avoid detection.
Phone evidence and supply network
Phone evidence revealed Byrne had been sending bulk text messages – known as “text bombs” – to up to 50 contacts at a time. Ms Glanville said it was clear from some of the messages that the defendant had been supplying cocaine to “low-level dealers” as well as street-dealing himself.
Arrest
Byrne was arrested on March 22 and found to be carrying £1,670 in cash and an iPhone. He had previously pleaded guilty to being concerned in the supply of cocaine.
Defence
Derrick Gooden, representing Byrne, told the court his client had experienced “difficulties” in his life but was not seeking to blame anyone else and understood the risks involved in supplying Class A drugs. He said character references before the court “speak to a different Lucas Byrne” from the one who had committed the offences and that his client wished to spend his time in custody constructively, completing as many courses as possible.
Sentencing
Recorder Dyfed Thomas said police had conducted a “persistent and considerable” investigation which resulted in the LZ line being attributed to Byrne.
He said he had read letters written to the court by Byrne’s partner and grandparents and it was clear there were people who cared about the defendant and did not want to see him wasting his life.
The recorder warned Byrne that if he were caught dealing Class A drugs for a third time, the sentence as a third-strike dealer would start at seven years in prison.
With a one-quarter discount for his guilty plea, Byrne was sentenced to three years in prison. He will serve up to half that term in custody before being released on licence to serve the remainder in the community.
