Newport Man Jailed in £30k Drug Bust with “Aladdin’s Cave”

Police uncovered a major drug operation in Newport as Lester Gibson, 46, was sentenced to over four years in prison after officers found more than £30,000 worth of heroin and cocaine at his Bettws home. 🚔

During a 2022 search at Gibson’s Itchen Road address, police discovered three blocks of class A drugs – 88.8g of cocaine and two packages of heroin weighing 125g and 100g, with a combined street value of £31,300, Merthyr Tydfil Crown Court heard.

The court was told that Gibson, who has 73 previous convictions for 197 offences, was also being sentenced for crimes committed shortly after his release from a previous drug trafficking sentence. In a police raid last October, officers found 87g of cannabis along with what prosecutor Emily Jermin described as “a little Aladdin’s cave of treasures” in the form of stolen goods, including clothing, a PlayStation, spa gift sets, cosmetics, a chainsaw, and even household items like a toaster and kettle.

Gibson admitted supplying heroin, possession with intent to supply heroin, cocaine and cannabis, possession of crack cocaine, and handling stolen goods. His co-defendant Daniel Murch, 39, of Frome Walk, Bettws, had been recruited to help sell cocaine when Gibson was “busy”.

“This is a street dealing case. Mr Murch was working under the direction of Mr Gibson,” said Miss Jermin.

Emma Harris, representing Gibson, told the court that her client, a father, “realises that he needs to turn his life around.”

Murch, who had no previous convictions and was last in court nearly 20 years ago for drink driving, pleaded guilty to supplying cocaine and possession of a firearm without a certificate after police found a BB gun. His barrister, Jac Brown, highlighted the lengthy delay in the case coming to court and noted that Murch was now clean of drugs and in a well-paid job, suggesting there was a “realistic prospect of rehabilitation.”

Judge Huw Rees sentenced Gibson to four years and six months in prison, while Murch received a 22-month sentence suspended for 18 months with a requirement to complete a 10-day rehabilitation activity.

Both defendants will face a proceeds of crime hearing later this year. 💼