January 22, 2010
Drug dealers jailed
Drug dealers who were found in possession of half a kilo of cannabis have been jailed.
Lee Pearman, 26, of Bolingbroke Road, Luton, was jailed for 12 months at Luton Crown Court on Thursday 21 January after pleading guilty to possessing cannabis with intent to supply.
With him in the dock was Luke Guigno, 21, of Northview Road, Harpenden, who was jailed for eight months. He also pleaded guilty to the same charge and had four previous convictions for possessing cannabis.
Guigno was renting the property at Arthur Street, Luton, when police raided it on 7 August 2008. They seized the drug with a street value worth between £2,500 and £4,500, along with all the necessary paraphernalia to weigh and package the drug.
Prosecutor Natalie Carter said mobile phones were also seized from the property and messages found on them gave a clear indication that drug deals had been arranged. Both men were arrested at the property but had maintained their innocence until December last year, when their trial was due to take place.
Counsel for both defendants urged the court to suspend the sentences. They said they now understood the consequences of what they were doing and were trying to deal with their addictions.
But Judge Jeffrey Burke QC told the pair: "Those who deal in drugs, including cannabis, have to know the courts take such dealing seriously. You were both addicted to cannabis and you were doing this to enable you to secure your own supplies."
