A cocaine dealer who benefitted to the tune of almost £200,000 has been ordered to pay back just £2,500 of his ill-gotten gains.
Liam Friar's lucrative operation came crashing down when a fidgety woman in a car he was in raised police suspicions she was on drugs. Inquiries showed Friar had been dealing cocaine and he was jailed for 31 months last year.
Now his case has been brought back to Newcastle Crown Court under the Proceeds of Crime Act. The court heard he benefitted to the tune of £199,833 but his available assets amount to a car worth £2,500, which is the figure he must pay back within three months or face an extra two months in jail. If he were ever to come into money in the future, he would be made to pay more of the outstanding amount.
Read more: Newcastle dealer caught with drugs worth £88,000 after trying to hide in wheelie bin
We reported in October how Friar was caught when police stopped a car and the demeanour of the woman in the driving seat led officers to think she was possibly on drugs, prompting a search. Passenger Friar was found to have £1,300 cash and a small bag containing white powder residue.
When he was searched in custody, police found nine bags of cocaine in his shoe, weighing 3.9g. At his home, £3,450 of cash was recovered from a bedside table and the expensive watch.
An examination of his phone revealed a debtors list of 18 people he was dealing to and WhatsApp messages showing he had been selling drugs. And between January 2020 and July 2021 £86,122 went into his three bank accounts, despite him having no legitimate means of income.
Friar, 24, of Meadow Garth, Belford, Northumberland, pleaded guilty to possessing cocaine with intent to supply and was jailed for 31 months. When interviewed by the probation service, he admitted having been dealing for four years.
Judge Christopher Prince, at Newcastle Crown Court, said: "It doesn't require me to lecture you on the impact cocaine has on users. You were personally profiting from the sales you were making from such a dangerous, illegal drug."
Richard Bloomfield, defending, said Friar was immature and references speak highly of him. He added: "It was about funding his own abuse. He was gambling at the time and needed money to pay for his drugs. He shows remorse at what he has done and is of previous good character before this."
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