A man's phone "made it pretty clear" to police that he was working as a street drug dealer..
Jack Barr, who was part of the Tommy Line drug crew, was caught with 65 wraps of heroin and crack cocaine. The 22-year-old of Wheatear Close, Liverpool, appeared for sentence at Liverpool Crown Court on Thursday having pleaded guilty at the first opportunity to two counts of possession with intent to supply Class A drugs, acquiring criminal property namely cash, and simple possession of Class B cannabis.
Christopher Hopkins, prosecuting, told how police officers were on plain clothes duty in Widnes when they spotted Barr appear to take part in a drug deal with a user.
When the police identified themselves, Barr ran off and was seen to "discard a bag". Officers caught up with Barr and retrieved the jettisoned contraband, consisting of 33 wraps of crack cocaine and 32 of heroin in £10 deals. Barr had a "small amount" of cannabis on him, £220.85 in cash and a phone, which revealed messages believed to be requests for his stocks of drugs to be resupplied such as "bring both" and "come and sub", and another asking to be paid.
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Mr Hopkins said it was "pretty clear on that evidence the defendant was working as a street dealer".
Barr had once conviction for an offence from 2018, which was unspecified but for which Barr received seven years in a young offenders institution for a non-drug-related matter, and for which he left custody in August 2021, meaning he was recalled to prison when caught selling crack and heroin in Widnes.
Paul Wood, defending, argued mitigation for Barr’s early guilty pleas and said Barr’s path into drug dealing was similar to other cases, having started using cocaine in around August 2022 before moving onto the crack form and falling into addiction and then selling drugs "due to the pressure he’s placed under".
He said Barr was a “very young man” and the last time he used drugs was the day before he was arrested, and then went "cold turkey" in custody.
Mr Wood said: "It’s a shame.
"He’s a person with some good qualities.
"He’d found work since his release but clearly had got into very bad habits so far as the drugs are concerned."
Recorder Michael Blakey sentenced Barr, who appeared via videolink, to three years and four months in prison for the crack and heroin dealing with no separate penalties for the cannabis and cash, and ordered a statutory surcharge.
He approved the destruction of the drugs and the forfeiture of the cash to be donated to charity.
During his sentencing comments the judge said: "I’m told although you had nothing on your record so far as this type of offending is concerned, you involved yourself in drugs and this is a consequence of that involvement."
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