Dominic Price (Image: South Wales Police)
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A drug dealer who warned a customer that men from Cardiff would cut him, stab him, bundle him into a van and kill him unless a £2,000 debt was cleared has been sent to prison.
Dominic Price, 37, of Clos Dyfodwg, Llantwit Fardre, was jailed for 27 months at Cardiff Crown Court on Tuesday after admitting blackmail and possession of class A and class C drugs.
The threats
Jonathan Mott had run up a £2,000 drug debt with Price and the two had agreed a way of clearing it – Mr Mott would deal on Price’s behalf, which he did for several months. Price kept chasing the money, and on February 22 he rang Mr Mott and demanded the full amount.
Prosecutor Abdallah Barakat told the court: “The defendant said he would give his name and address to people from Cardiff and those individuals would find (Mr Mott), drag him, cut him and stab him, put him into the back of a van and kill him.”
Mr Mott was given until February 23 to pay. He was also warned that if he could not be tracked down, his family and children would suffer the consequences instead.
He went to the police. When he spoke to them his voice was shaking and he was clearly in distress.
Police interview
Price was arrested and questioned, and denied everything. He told officers: “I haven’t done nothing and I have said nothing, this is a set up.”
Impact on the victim
In a personal statement read to the court, Mr Mott said: “Dominic has ruined my life, the life of my parents and my children. When he made threats to me I was terrified, I was shaking and could not stop crying. I didn’t know what to do. I was scared to contact the police and make things worse but I felt there was no other way I could keep myself and my family safe.
“I feel Dominic is a predator who took advantage of me and has impacted every part of my life. Me and my family have never experienced anything like this before. My family is extremely nervous the threats are going to be carried out. My parents are still very nervous they will be targeted by Dominic or I will be hurt by them.”
He said he had given up his job at a school because he feared for the safety of the children there, and that he had thought about taking his own life.
Drugs found at his home
Price was also sentenced for possession offences dating back to January 8, when police called at his home. He locked the door and refused to let officers in, but they forced entry and searched the property, recovering cocaine, amphetamine and bromazolam.
Mitigation
Harry Baker, defending, argued that not every difficulty in Mr Mott’s life could be blamed on his client, and said Mr Mott had lost his job at the school because of his own involvement in drugs.
Sentencing
Recorder Paul Lewis KC jailed Price for 27 months. The court heard he has 12 previous convictions, most of them drug related.
