A dad who dealt drugs to finance his young daughter’s eye surgery, vowed to “never stand in court again”, before being sentenced to four years in prison.
Callum Edwards-Pritchard, 27, admitted he had made the “biggest mistake of my life” after returning to crime in order to fund private treatment after his daughter was born with cataracts in her right eye.
Edwards-Pritchard, from Swansea – who had two previous convictions for eight offences, including being involved in a conspiracy to supply cocaine – was caught after police found messages from him on the phone of another dealer who they had arrested last year, reports Wales Online.
The texts revealed he had been involved in the supply of cocaine and ketamine, with conversations relating to deals and money owed, as well as the potential customer base.
Following his arrest, he attempted to cover up his actions by telling police an incorrect code to unlock his phone and refusing to reveal the correct one.
But Edwards-Pritchard was full of remorse as he appeared at Swansea Crown Court via a video link from prison and read a heartfelt letter which he had addressed to the judge.
In the letter, he explained that he had “panicked” about how he was going to afford private surgery to stop his baby girl from going blind, but now deeply regretted getting involved in dealing in order to finance it.
He was sentenced having pleaded guilty to being concerned in the supply of both Class A and Class B drugs, namely cocaine and ketamine.
The court heard how the defendant was caught after police arrested another man as part of a separate investigation in December.
Georgia Donohue, prosecuting, told the court that on February 26 this year, Edwards-Pritchard was arrested for an unrelated matter and his mobile phone was seized.
He was found to have the same number as the one that had been in communication with Isaac prior to his arrest. Following his arrest, he accepted the phone and number belonged to him. However, when he was asked to provide a four-digit code to unlock the phone, he gave officers an incorrect one and when asked again to provide the correct code, he refused.
But while police were in possession of the unlocked phone, they were still able to see incoming messages, which further suggested he was involved in the supply of Class A drugs. One such message read: “What’s going on bro, you good? Any chance of a G until the end of the week?,” with police believing this to relate to the supply of cocaine.
On April 24, Edwards-Pritchard attended the custody suite at Swansea police station, saying he had been recalled on licence, and he was arrested the following day for the supply offences.
Defence counsel John Allchurch told the court his client had shown “genuine remorse” for his actions and insisted his motive was purely a financial one in order for him to afford his daughter’s surgery, claiming that he “simply felt he had to do something”.
He added that Edwards-Pritchard had found himself a good job with Persimmon Homes and was performing well there, telling the judge that without his daughter’s illness “everything would have been the same”.
During the sentencing hearing, Edwards-Pritchard addressed the judge from prison, having written a letter further explaining his actions and subsequent remorse.
With the help of a prison officer, he told the court how he had been out of jail for three years and “working his way up the ladder” at work, while also meeting the “girl of his dreams”, with whom he had a “beautiful” baby daughter, born with cataracts.
“I panicked,” he told the judge. “I knew I needed to make money as soon as possible to pay for her treatment and aftercare, so I made the biggest mistake of my life. Now, I’m not going to be there for my partner or daughter.”
He added: “I don’t want this letter to be a letter of sympathy, but I want to tell you that I want to give back to the community and charity. I will never stand in court again.”
Sentencing Edwards-Pritchard, Recorder David Payne told him: “You have managed to create a family life for yourself, you have the capacity to work and can contribute positively to society. I make note of your charitable ambitions. It is striking how your conduct has worn on you."
Edwards-Pritchard will serve up to half of his four-year sentence in custody before being released on licence.
