Thomas Morgan (Image: South Wales Police)
Last Updated: 3 minutes ago
A 22-year-old man who stashed thousands of pounds in drug money around his house – but left a knuckleduster in plain sight – has been sentenced to more than three years in prison.
Thomas Morgan, of Cardigan Crescent, Winch Wen, Swansea, was handed a total of 41 months after pleading guilty to being concerned in the supply of cocaine, possession of criminal property, and possession of an offensive weapon in a private place.
How police caught him
Swansea Crown Court, sitting remotely in Cardiff Magistrates Court, heard that Morgan first came to the attention of officers in March this year. Detectives working on a separate drugs investigation discovered Facebook messages between their suspect and Morgan discussing the class A substance.
Prosecutor Megan Williams told the court that on March 31, police attended Morgan’s address. Despite hearing movement inside, their knocks went unanswered for some time before the defendant’s mother eventually let them in.
Morgan refused to reveal where his phone was. Officers searching the property found the device tucked inside a suitcase in a back bedroom, while £8,720 in cash was discovered concealed behind the bathroom sink. A further £395 was in his wallet and £180 was stashed in a Yorkshire Tea tin in his bedroom. A knuckleduster was also recovered, along with a tissue-wrapped bag in the toilet containing traces of an unidentified powder.
Phone evidence
An examination of Morgan’s phone uncovered messages relating to drug supply stretching from December 2025 to March 2026. He answered “no comment” to all questions in his police interview.
Previous offending
The court heard Morgan was already subject to two separate court orders at the time of his drug dealing. He was serving a community order for cannabis possession and for engaging in coercive and controlling behaviour towards a former partner.
That controlling behaviour included being aggressive and confrontational with the woman, checking her phone, accusing her of messaging other people, and assaulting her. On one occasion, Morgan sent the woman a picture of himself in woodland with a rope around his neck and told her she was responsible.
He was also subject to a suspended prison sentence for dangerous driving after leading police on a pursuit on a high-powered motorcycle. The chase began in Llansamlet and saw Morgan reach speeds of 70mph in 30mph zones, riding erratically and speeding along footpaths and over grass verges. He continued to flee even after stinger devices punctured both tyres, and a police helicopter was deployed to track him. He was arrested roughly an hour later after abandoning the bike and running on foot. A small quantity of cannabis was found on him when searched.
Morgan has four previous convictions for nine offences.
Defence
Matt Murphy, representing Morgan, told the court that while motorcycles played an important part in the defendant’s life, “he has a history of injuring himself” on such machines and had ended up in a coma in hospital in December 2024 as a result of an incident on a bike. He said it was clear from the pre-sentence report that Morgan has “pro-criminal attitudes” and that work needed to be done to move him away from those.
Sentencing
Recorder Greg Bull KC told Morgan that when he began dealing class A drugs he was subject to both a community order and a suspended sentence, and it was clear that “neither of those orders deterred you”.
With a one-third discount for his guilty pleas, Morgan received 32 months for the drug trafficking offence, six months for possession of criminal property, and two months for the knuckleduster, all running concurrently.
The recorder revoked the community order and imposed three months for those matters, and activated six months of the previously imposed 12-month suspended sentence. Both will run consecutively with each other and with the new sentence, making a total of 41 months.
Morgan will serve up to half that time in custody before being released on licence. The recorder ordered that the seized cash be forfeited and given to South Wales Police.
