Merthyr Tydfil drug dealers jailed for cocaine supply operation

A couple who flooded Merthyr Tydfil with cocaine through a brazen text message operation have been locked up for a combined eight years.

Matthew James, 39, will spend five years and 239 days behind bars, whilst his partner in crime Leah Thomas, 26, received a three-year sentence after both admitted being concerned in the supply of cocaine at Merthyr Tydfil Crown Court on Friday.

South Wales Police uncovered their illegal enterprise whilst monitoring two mobile phone numbers that were blasting out bulk messages advertising cocaine for sale. The phones, belonging to James and Thomas, sent more than 2,000 text messages to potential customers across the area.

Their criminal venture came crashing down on 8 July 2025 when organised crime unit officers spotted Thomas’s vehicle parked outside James’s home. The pair were arrested as they left the property.

A search revealed Thomas was carrying a phone, whilst another was discovered in her car. Both devices contained sim cards directly linked to their drugs line, with hundreds of messages connecting the duo to cocaine supply activities running from February through to July 2025.

Sergeant Andrew Carver said: “Matthew James and Leah Thomas are a pair who saw Class A drugs as a ‘get-rich-quick’ scheme. Drugs blight our communities, and they were playing their part in bringing that misery to the streets of Merthyr Tydfil. Tackling organised crime is a priority for South Wales Police and we will continue to be relentless in our pursuit of criminals to protect communities from harm.”