A 29-YEAR-OLD man who tried to import cannabis with a street value of up to £150,000 into Jersey has been jailed for two years.
Matthew John Planner was told that the quantity of drugs involved, the harm they would have caused and the fact that he had pleaded not guilty at his first court appearance meant that a prison sentence could not be avoided.
Crown Advocate Luke Sette, prosecuting, told the Royal Court that a parcel sent from Nottingham – addressed to Planner – had arrived in Jersey on 7 September last year.
It appeared to contain sports equipment but this was found to be concealing ten bars of cannabis resin in heat-sealed packages, which were also covered in bleach to disguise the smell of the drug.
The drugs weighed just under five kilos and would have fetched between £100,000 and £150,000 if sold on the streets.
Advocate Sette said the Customs officers substituted the parcel for a dummy package, and a postal worker found Planner standing outside the address waiting for it. He was arrested the following day.
Planner pleaded not guilty when he appeared in the Magistrate’s Court in April, which meant that a full prosecution case had to be prepared.
The court heard that Planner had no previous convictions and that his role was to receive and store the drugs, rather than to sell them.
But Advocate Sette said: “Receiving and minding drugs for others is a crucial role.”
Advocate Heidi Heath, defending, said: “He is a young man who has never been part of the judicial system before. He is not somebody who is used to being in trouble.”
She said that Planner’s GP had diagnosed him with anxiety and depression but that Planner had been persuaded by friends not to take the prescribed medication but to self-medicate with cannabis and had run up drug debts as a result.
She said he had an offer of a good job as a scaffolder and suggested that the employment, coupled with a community service order, would allow him to contribute positively to society. She also recommended a probation order.
However, the Bailiff, Sir Timothy Le Cocq, said that those who received and minded drugs formed “an essential link in the drugs supply chain”, and had to be punished by prison.
He told Planner: “It was your choice to use cannabis and involve yourself in a trade that uses threats and violence. You put your friends, your family and yourself at risk.”
After the sentencing, senior Customs manager Luke Goddard said: “This is a significant seizure of cannabis, and demonstrates both the high level of vigilance our officers have in dealing with postal traffic and the ability JCIS has in undertaking covert activities in order to bring successful prosecutions against those involved in this level of criminality.
“Undoubtedly the disruption caused to the syndicate involved will be significant, and the resulting sentence reflects the seriousness of the offence.”
The Jurats sitting for the case were Robert Christensen and Gareth Hughes.
