Bodybuilder who once turned prison officer into…

Bodybuilder who once turned prison officer into criminal found with drugs between his buttocks

A bodybuilder who once convinced a besotted prison officer to smuggle steroids into prison was caught with class A drugs in his bum crack. Ashley Keany was found with 16.1g of high purity crack cocaine clenched between his buttocks when he was taken into custody after being arrested in July last year.

The 35-year-old has been in and out of custody since 2007 but told a judge he is tired of prison - and just wants to go to Lytham with his nan. Keany pleaded guilty to possession with intent to supply on the basis the drugs, worth £1,610, were 'only for sharing with his stepdad', Lancs Live reports.

He had no intention of further supply, Beth Pilling, prosecuting, told Preston Crown Court yesterday (July 14). Keany's defence barrister Daniel Harman summarised a letter Keany wrote to the judge.

He said: "Here I am again, after 20 years of being in and out of prison. It's time to grow up. I just want to go for a day out in Lytham and sit on a bench with my nan."

In 2015, Keany was jailed for eight years for being a key player in a Preston gang which used a park as its headquarters to pedal heroin and crack. The gang hid a live and loaded firearm in a hollowed out tree and used a catcall howl to signal to drug users and gang members that they were in the area.

While behind bars, in 2019, the bodybuilding lag was sentenced to a further three and a half years after he struck up a secret romance with a prison officer. He set up a drugs racket from his cell at HMP Garth and convinced the besotted officer to smuggle steroids inside for him.

When he was eventually released, Keany breached the terms of his licence, sparking a police appeal which saw his face circulated on social media. When officers found him - and the drugs he was carrying - he was sent straight back to prison.

At yesterday's hearing, Mr Harman said Keany became a father for the third time in March last year and wants to be a good dad to his children. He said: "This was his own stuff he was sharing with a relative he was staying with.

"It can't be categorised as dealing. It is supply, the same as somebody sharing a joint."

Sentencing him to 28 months, Judge Simon Medland QC said: "I take good account of the points you make through Mr Harman. Your observations that you would just like to be left alone to live your life, see your kids and sit on a bench with your grandma - I understand that.

"There is only one person on the face of the earth who can achieve that, and that is you. You will achieve this if you keep yourself off drugs and away from drugs. This is now your second offence. If you are convicted of another the court will have to start at seven years. You are plainly someone who has insight into your condition.

"If I were to ask you whether you enjoy being in prison, looking at a prison wall every day, having a few showers a week and not being able to see your kids? I can see you are shaking your head. Of course you don't.

"Well, people can help you stay out of prison and off drugs and away from crime but you are the only person who can actually do that. I hope you do resolve finally to live a life where you are not always going to be being looked over by the police and they are not going to be knocking your door down.

"You are someone who could get a job and have money in your pocket and have a quiet family life and have something to look forward to, but it has got to be done by you." Keany, of Assheton Road, Ribbleton, Preston, will remain behind bars until June 2023 at the earliest.

READ NEXT:

Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.

Already a member? Sign in here