Two men who became drug dealers after one lost his job during the pandemic and the other used it to 'get by' after being left homeless have been jailed. Jake Twist, 22, and Liam Phoenix, 22, were sentenced after a heroin and cocaine raid.
The pair were arrested and charged in June after a property in Irlam was raided by police. On 13 June, Greater Manchester Police searched a property in Neville Drive, off Silver Street, following an assault Surrounding homes then had to be evacuated with a 100 metre cordon put in place after a 'possible explosive device' was found, which ended up being a firework.
During a raid in Stretford, cannabis worth £865 was found, cocaine worth £800 was found and heroin with a street value of £1,190 was also found by police. Both men were remanded in custody and appeared at Manchester Crown Court to be sentenced on September 8.
Defending Phoenix, Anna Chestnutt told the court on that Mr Phoenix ‘in no way’ disputed the fact that he was a drug dealer Miss Chestnutt said he understood that he took to ‘drug dealing as a means to get by’ after becoming ‘street homeless’ at a young age. Phoenix was employed just before he was arrested. However, the ‘only reason’ he wasn’t working at the time of his arrest was because he had injured his hand, she said.
Miss Chestnutt told the court his employment showed a ‘sea change’ in the way he wanted to live his life and mentioned how he had made the ‘major decision’ to leave Manchester once he has carried out his sentence. Defending Twist, barrister Brendan O’Leary told the court that Mr Twist was not a ‘sophisticated hardened criminal’ who ‘now knows that committing a crime, custody will follow’.
Mr O’Leary said Mr Twist had suffered a serious assault while in custody at HMP Forest Bank and was keen to complete his sentence and move on with his life. Mr O’Leary pointed to Twist’s record which had been clear until he turned 20-years-old and said the explanation for this was due to the pandemic, where he had lost his job and ‘turned to crime’. Twist’s parents were also in attendance and Mr O’Leary, told the court how they had become ‘shocked and worried about the very quick downward spiral their son’s life has taken.’
Recorder Long sentenced Twist of Neville Drive, Irlam, to 45 months in prison for the supply of class A drugs, supply of class B drugs and possession of a bladed article. Phoenix of Princess Avenue, Irlam, was jailed for 36 months for the supply of class A drugs and possession of cannabis with intent to supply.
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