Drug dealer jailed after fleeing brothel raid in Newport

A drug dealer who tried to escape through a back garden during a police raid at a suspected brothel has been jailed.

Shay Williams, 21, was arrested after he ran from a suspected brothel on Phillip Street in Newport on Thursday, October 9. He fled through the back garden but was soon caught by officers.

The defendant had nearly £3,000 on him in cash and a mobile phone with drug-related messages, Newport Crown Court was told.

When police searched his home on George Lansbury Drive, Newport, they found Burberry trainers worth more than £500 and 17 wraps of crack cocaine which had a potential street value of between £540 and £720.

Prosecutor Hannah Friedman said Williams was a “street dealer”. He gave a no comment interview when questioned by detectives.

Williams admitted possession with intent to supply a class A drug and possession of criminal property. He committed the offence after he had been released from prison for similar offences last year. The defendant was locked up for 30 months in July 2024.

Defence lawyer Jac Brown told the court: “When he was released from prison, he found it difficult to extricate himself from the life he had before. The defendant still had a drug debt to pay when he was released from jail and his own addiction to cannabis. He took the easy way to pay it off and make ends meet.”

Mr Brown added that his client had found it difficult to find a job with his previous conviction. “The only real mitigation is that he pleaded guilty at the earliest possible opportunity,” he concluded.

Judge Daniel Williams told the defendant: “You tried to escape from the police but you were soon detained. You had nearly £3,000 in cash.”

Williams was jailed for three years and eight months and told he would serve half of that sentence in prison before being released on licence.

The defendant is due to face a proceeds of crime hearing on April 13 next year.