AN ELECTRICIAN and former go kart racer has told a court he turned to drug dealing to pay back a $20,000 debt he racked up trying to fund his own addiction.
Kane Wiltshire was jailed in Newcastle District Court for three-and-a-half-years, with a non-parole period of one year and nine months, after pleading guilty to a string of supply charges for various illegal drugs.
The 40-year-old Lake Macquarie man has remained behind bars since his arrest in February last year, and gave evidence during the sentence hearing that he was committed to changing.
"I've had enough of this life, I've had enough of being inside a jail cell ... having no money, no family, no friends," he told the court, his voice cracking with emotion.
Wiltshire said he had been given drugs to take on a credit basis, but then his suppliers came knocking for a debt that was at one point almost $20,000.
"They threatened me with my life," he said.
After a stint in jail for a separate matter, Wiltshire said he was clean but when he tried to pay back his former dealers by selling a catalogue of drugs - like ice, cannabis and LSD - the temptation to take them was too strong.
"I used the drugs as well as sold them," he said.
He conceded that by the time of his arrest he was using his drug money profits to support himself.
His defence lawyer handed up medical reports and a letter from Wiltshire's parents, and asked Judge Roy Ellis to consider his mental health, background and other conditions at sentencing.
He said Wiltshire had been offered a job as an electrician in Caves Beach upon his release.
Judge Ellis said all of Wiltshire's drug charges were for "deemed supply", with some stemming from a roadside stop on February 28, 2022, when some items were seized, and others flowing after police raided his house the next day and found other illicit substances.
He said that while Wiltshire had been heavily involved in the supply scene, the amounts he was caught with were at the lower end.
"It's clear that he's not in the category of a person who's been making huge profits left, right and centre, travelling around the country buying Ferraris etc.," Judge Ellis said.
After time served, Wiltshire could walk from prison in November this year.
The sentence covered eight drug supply charges; one count of dealing with the proceeds of crime, namely $325; possessing or attempting to possess a restricted substance; and custody of a knife in public.
Judge Ellis warned Wiltshire his rehabilitation relied upon him seeking help and following through with it.
"It actually takes more courage, I think, for a man to own up and admit that 'I have a problem ... and I need help'," he said.
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