Jail for drug dealers (North Somerset)

Four drug dealers from North Somerset have been sentenced at Bristol Crown Court this week after being found guilty of being concerned in a conspiracy to supply and for supplying cannabis.

Anthony Cason, aged 31, of no fixed abode, was sentenced to 28 months in custody for his part in a group supplying cannabis. 29-year-old Carl Myers from Longridge Way, Weston-Super-Mare, was given a six month custodial sentence for conspiracy and 12 months for the production of class B drugs to run consecutively.

40-year-old Rachel Shaw from Mendip Avenue, Weston-super-Mare, received a 12 month custodial sentence suspended for two years for supplying drugs. She has to adhere to a curfew for six months between 8pm and 8am. Dean Cowell, 28, from Windermere Avenue also in Weston, received a four month custodial sentence, suspended for a year and 200 hours of community service for conspiracy to supply drugs.

All the defendants have also had an Anti-Social Behaviour Order granted against them which bans them from using unregistered mobile phones for five years.

The sentencing comes after a year-long investigation into drug supply in Weston-Super-Mare. Mr Myers and Mr Cason were stopped by the local beat team whilst driving on Coleridge Road in February 2013. They were seen to throw items out of the car window, which was discovered to be two bags of cannabis each weighing over 27 grams and with an estimated street value of approximately £530.Two blocks of cannabis resin weighing ½ a kilo with a street value of £5,000 were subsequently found when officers searched the car. Mr Cason was also found to be in possession of £436 in cash.

A subsequent search of Mr Myers' home was made after his arrest and officers found further cannabis plants which experts have indicated would have a potential street value of £10,000. Following further investigation Mr Cowell was arrested after a Misuse of Drugs Act Warrant was executed at his home after he was linked to the cannabis being supplied by Mr Myers and Cason. The investigation continued and later linked Ms Shaw to the supply chain. She was arrested in April 2013 at her home address and officers recovered cannabis in separate bags with a street value of £2045 and a tin containing £1745 in cash.

Inspector Sharon Bennett from Weston Police Station said: "This is a good result. We are determined to disrupt drug dealing in our town. Many people think that cannabis is less important than class A drugs. But they need to remember the wider impact. Often people will commit other crime in order to fund their drug habits. Drug dealing and consumption also brings with it related anti-social behaviour which impacts on neighbours and whole communities. No one wants drug crime on their back door step.

"The neighbourhood team did a fantastic job. I would also like to thank members of the community who provided us with information. We do listen and we do act. Please keep talking to us about suspected crime in your neighbourhood. We will take action."

CPS prosecutor Richard Posner said: "Following a discussion with investigating officers it became clear on the evidence we had that there was a significant effort by Antony Cason to bring cannabis into the Bournville estate and, using his sister, ensure there was a supply of cannabis to those who wished to use it. Antony Cason and Carl Myers were brazen in their efforts to make money from selling cannabis and the impact of their criminal behaviour in and around the communities where they lived must have been challenging. Prosecuting those who deal in cannabis is as much about trying to stem the anti-social behaviour that blights some of our neighbourhoods that are affected by it as it is in seeking to control those who seek to make money from drug dealing."

http://www.avonandsomerset.police.uk 15/01/2014