Silas Lee’s client acquitted of possessing criminal property in unanimous verdict

Silas Lee, instructed by Ben Darabi and Stefan Sutherland of Carson Kaye Solicitors, represented a client acquitted of possessing a quantity of cash alleged to have been the proceeds of drug dealing. The defendant was stopped by police and found to have eight different class A to C controlled drugs, as well as £1390 in cash and two mobile phones.

An expert drugs witness for the prosecution had stated that the quantity and array of drugs meant that they must have been for commercial supply. The defendant had given a no comment interview and refused to provide access to his phones.

On the day of trial, the defendant pleaded guilty to eight counts of supplying class A, B and C controlled drugs on the basis that they were to be shared with friends, which was not accepted by the prosecution.

The defendant was unanimously acquitted of the criminal property charge, brought under s. 329(1)(c) of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002. The acquittal also resolved the dispute over the defendant’s basis of plea, in his favour., such that the court took as its starting point for sentence a term of 18 months’ imprisonment as opposed to 4 years 6 months.

The defendant, who had previous convictions for offering to supply class B drugs, was given a suspended sentence of 43 weeks, suspended for 18 months, with no additional punitive element.