Milford Haven drug dealer ordered to pay £6,569 after jail

A Pembrokeshire man who thought he could make a fortune selling drugs at a music festival has been hit with a confiscation order after being jailed for five years.

Justin Cadwell, 29, from Picton Close in Milford Haven, saw his criminal enterprise unravel when police stopped a vehicle on the A31 near Winchester on August 8, 2024, acting on intelligence about drug dealing.

Cadwell was sitting in the passenger seat whilst his sister drove – though she was later cleared of any involvement after police examined her phone. What officers discovered inside the car was destined for a Hampshire festival: 44.363 grams of cannabis, nitrous oxide cannisters worth £2,225, 15.11 grams of ketamine, 12.4 grams of MDMA, and additional small amounts of cannabis.

But the festival bust was only the beginning. When police searched Cadwell’s home, they uncovered his garden shed had been turned into a drug storage facility. Inside the locked shed, officers seized 53.25 grams of cannabis, 450 grams of cannabis resin, 29.8 grams of cocaine, cutting agents, and empty snap bags used for dealing.

Even more telling was the cash – a staggering £25,307.85 hidden in the shed and his bedroom. Cadwell claimed it came from his work as a window cleaner and gifts from his father, and insisted all the drugs were just for personal use.

His story became even less believable months later on March 1, when emergency services responded to an e-bike crash at Hakin Point in Milford Haven around 7pm. The bike had no lights, and the passenger wasn’t wearing a helmet. Cadwell, the rider, was knocked unconscious in the collision.

As paramedics cut off his jacket to treat him, they discovered 10.21 grams of cocaine and 60 grams of cannabis in his clothing, along with £588.03 in cash. He refused to take a drugs test and again claimed the substances were for personal use.

At Swansea Crown Court in July, Cadwell pleaded guilty to two offences of possession with intent to supply cocaine, three offences of possession with intent to supply cannabis, possession with intent to supply nitrous oxide and cannabis resin, being concerned in the supply of cannabis, possession of criminal property, and failing to provide a specimen when required.

Prosecutor Georgia Donohue told the court that under the Proceeds of Crime Act, it was agreed Cadwell had profited £14,719.79 from his drug dealing activities, with £6,569 in available assets that could be seized.

Judge Geraint Walters issued a confiscation order for £6,569, ensuring Cadwell would have to pay back some of his ill-gotten gains.