Ex-lorry driver jailed for dealing cocaine in Swansea

A former lorry driver and tree surgeon who turned to dealing cocaine after losing his HGV licence has been jailed for two years.

Matthew Davies, 36, of Samuel Crescent, Gendros, Swansea, was caught selling the Class A drug in the Penlan area on October 27 this year after police spotted a known drug user withdrawing cash from an ATM on Conway Road before getting into his Fiat 500.

When officers moved in to detain Davies, he was seen putting a package into his mouth and began chewing it. Swansea Crown Court heard that police “pleaded” with him to stop but he refused, and attempts to get him to open his mouth failed. He was taken to hospital where doctors removed empty packaging from his mouth.

Davies refused to reveal his phone’s PIN code, but officers were able to access the device and found messages showing his involvement in supplying cocaine over the previous week.

The court heard Davies had lost his HGV licence following a drug-driving conviction and disqualification in February this year. Andrew Evans, defending, said the dealing had been a “short-lived enterprise” done to fund his client’s habit. He said his client had worked as a lorry driver and tree surgeon but after losing his HGV licence “his life spiralled out of control”.

Davies has 22 previous convictions for 46 offences, including cultivating cannabis, driving under the influence of drugs, and driving whilst disqualified. His last drug conviction was in 2009.

Judge Catherine Richards told Davies that when he chose to supply Class A drugs he would have known what sentence awaited him if caught. She said that addiction to Class A drugs destroys lives, families and communities.

Davies pleaded guilty to being concerned in the supply of cocaine and was sentenced to two years in prison. He will serve up to half the sentence in custody before being released on licence to serve the remainder in the community.