Newport drug dealer jailed after 674 calls expose operation

A Newport drug dealer who tried to escape police on an electric bike has been jailed for three years and five months. 📱⚖️

Joshua Marchant, 29, of Broad Mead Park, was caught after phones seized in two separate police raids were found to be in “constant communication” with him, Newport Crown Court heard.

Prosecutor Hannah Friedman told the court that one dealer’s phone had been in “constant communication” with Marchant’s number, with 674 calls and “a large number” of text messages between them.

When police spotted Marchant in the Broad Mead Park area on 30 April, he tried to flee on an electric bike. He crashed into a car whilst attempting to escape, then pushed an officer in the chest and swung a punch towards the officer’s face before getting away.

Marchant was eventually arrested on 12 May after being spotted in a garden. Officers found an iPhone, three bags of crack cocaine and four bags of cannabis on him.

A search of his home uncovered two vacuum-sealed bags of cannabis weighing 247 and 251 grams, three Nokia phones, £1,490 in cash, a further 14.2 grams of cannabis and £40 in cash. The cannabis had a total street value of up to £3,110, whilst the crack cocaine was worth £90.

On Marchant’s phones were ‘text bombs’ advertising the drugs he had available for sale and voice notes where he discussed drug sales and how busy he was.

Marchant pleaded guilty to being concerned in the supply of crack cocaine, possession with intent to supply cannabis, possession of cocaine, and assaulting an emergency worker. He had four previous convictions for eight offences.

Emma Harris, defending, said: “He’s someone who in times of difficulty has placed reliance on drugs and alcohol. He turned to drugs and therefore turned to supplying drugs to pay off his debt and fund his own habit.”

Ms Harris added that Marchant had completed “various” courses in prison and had “made efforts to try and turn his life around”.

Judge Celia Hughes described Marchant as “a frequent and busy drug dealer” as she sentenced him.