Cardiff Crown Court Sentencing Results

From 2014 to 2018, Joanne Hughes, a 48-year-old woman from Porthcawl, set up her own accountancy firm and deceitfully tricked three small businesses into a tax payment scam. She stole £280,000 by reassuring clients that their payments were for HMRC, but instead diverted the funds to her own bank accounts. An investigation began in 2019 after one business's new accountants discovered irregularities in their books.

Emma Flower, 39, stole a vulnerable woman's bank card and drained her account of £16,000 until it was empty. She was employed as a carer for New Directions Care and Support and was responsible for providing care to a woman who suffered from learning difficulties, was illiterate, had arthritis and was wheelchair bound. While the defendant's duties included helping the victim with her shopping, she was not authorised to use or take possession of her bank card. Despite this she took the woman's card and withdrew funds over a six month period. The fraud came to light when another carer noticed there was a lack of food or heating in the victim's home and when her bank statements were checked, there had been a number of withdrawals from her account. The defendant, of Hillside Avenue, Blaenavon, was seen on CCTV footage using the victim's card to withdraw money from her account from a cash machine at an Abergavenny garage.

Taylor Barry, 18, from Riverside, was driving a black BMW 1 series with suspected cloned number plates in the Riverside area of Cardiff on Wednesday, August 2 at around 4.50pm. Officers from South Wales Police Roads Policing Team attempted to stop the vehicle at traffic lights on Clare Road. Barry tried to make off by driving forward and then reversing at speed, colliding with two other cars. No one was injured. Barry was arrested in the driver's seat. A blue package containing numerous wraps of Class A drugs was found close to the car, and further items linked to drug dealing such as tick lists, digital scales, white powder, seal bags, and mobile phones were seized from their home addresses.

Antonio Oracko, 19, from Cathays, was a passenger in a black BMW 1 series with suspected cloned number plates in the Riverside area of Cardiff on Wednesday, August 2 at around 4.50pm. Officers from South Wales Police Roads Policing Team attempted to stop the vehicle at traffic lights on Clare Road. The driver tried to make off by driving forward and then reversing at speed, colliding with two other cars. No one was injured. Oracko ran off but was detained a short distance away. He was in possession of £454, and a mobile phone containing messages about the supply of Class A drugs was found in the car. A blue package containing numerous wraps of Class A drugs was found close to the car, and further items linked to drug dealing such as tick lists, digital scales, white powder, seal bags, and mobile phones were seized from their home addresses.

Rhian Horsey, 55, stole up to £300,000 from a 100-year-old woman between 2011 and 2017. She cared for her victim in Cardiff and was trusted to use her credit cards to withdraw cash on her behalf. The defendant, of Y Park, Groesfaen, Pontyclun, abused her position of trust to carry out sudden and significant withdrawals of thousands of pounds and pocketed the cash, which she used to spend on luxury holidays for her and her family. She also falsified cheques which she paid to herself and made bank transfers from the victim's account to her own account. The theft came to light after the victim's daughter became concerned at the frequency and amounts of cash withdrawals from her mother's account and investigated the matter.

Leigh Elston, 35, from the Penpedairheol area, was sentenced for possession of drugs with intent to supply. He has allegedly breached his licence conditions following his release and has been recalled to prison.

Jason Agyekum-Sah, 22, from Peckford Place, Brixton, travelled from London to Cardiff with a significant quantity of Class A drugs. He was arrested in Cardiff on February 10, 2015, carrying 32g of drugs worth £3,000. He denied possession with intent to supply cocaine and heroin but was found guilty following a trial.

Barfah Joof, 22, from Hilda Lockhart Walk, Lambeth, travelled from London to Cardiff with a significant quantity of Class A drugs. He was arrested in Cardiff on February 10, 2015. He denied possession with intent to supply cocaine and heroin but was found guilty following a trial.

Peter Norman Joel Crump was involved in supplying significant volumes of cocaine in Abertillery, with messages on a seized phone revealing he boasted about moving nine ounces per week, approximately one kilogram monthly, over eight months.

Radoslaw Gasiorowski, a Mercedes-driving cannabis dealer, was arrested after police watched him placing a package of cannabis worth around £17,000 into the boot of his car outside a convenience store.

Pawel Kobis, 46, of Abertillery, was part of an organised crime group involved in a large-scale drug supply network stretching across south Wales and the south-west of England. The operation involved cocaine, crack cocaine, MDMA, methamphetamine, and ketamine with a street value of more than £3.5m. He received instructions from an upstream supplier and his role involved collecting and distributing large quantities of drugs across the UK.

Neil Espin, of Tewkesbury Walk, Newport, maintained a factory job while dealing drugs to fund his crack cocaine addiction. Officers carried out a search warrant at his home on March 7 2026 after intelligence linked him to a drugs line and Snapchat account connected to cocaine supply. His phone was seized along with a small quantity of cannabis. Messages provided clear evidence of involvement in supplying class A, B and C drugs. He admitted being concerned in the supply of cocaine, cannabis and pregabalin along with simple possession of cannabis.

Nazif Lala, 25, of Oxford, was part of an organised crime group involved in a large-scale drug supply network stretching across south Wales and the south-west of England. The operation involved cocaine, crack cocaine, MDMA, methamphetamine, and ketamine with a street value of more than £3.5m. He served as a courier, transporting drugs to the group's extensive customer base.

Robert Mark Davies, the former head of finance at homelessness charity Cyrenians Cymru, carried out a £1.3m fraud by forging invoices at the Swansea-based charity. The fraud took place between 4 June 2008 and 11 November 2014. He used the stolen funds for personal expenses including boats, airfares, and staying at The Savoy hotel in London. The charity suffered severe financial impact, going into liquidation in May 2015 owing £915,000, with most projects transferred to other charities. He pleaded guilty to fraud by deception at Cardiff Magistrates Court in February 2017.

Ross Appleby led a Newport-based drug-dealing operation involved in a conspiracy to supply class A and class B drugs. On 25 January 2024, officers raided a property in Newport and recovered 700g of cocaine and 134g of cannabis. Appleby was identified as the leader of the enterprise.

Ross Gardner conspired with Hafiz Razaq to sell a Grandpower handgun online using EncroChat. The plot was uncovered after EncroChat was taken down. He was convicted of both conspiracy to acquire a prohibited weapon and additional drug offences.

Elson Sinanaj was found with more than £16,000 worth of drugs after officers witnessed a drug deal in Cathays, Cardiff. He was working as a drug dealer in return for accommodation after becoming homeless.

Declan Carr, 27, was part of an organised crime network operating across south-east Wales supplying cocaine in Newport, Cwmbran and Pontypool using dedicated phone lines to send bulk text messages. Gwent Police executed drugs warrants at four addresses in the Bettws area of Newport in 2024 following intelligence from a seized mobile phone. Carr was detained in July 2024. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced at Cardiff Crown Court.

Declan Jones, 22, from Brynmawr, was convicted of conspiracy to supply class A drugs at Cardiff Crown Court in May 2024 and jailed for six years in June 2024. He later failed to return to HMP Prescoed, Monmouthshire, on 20 December 2024, prompting a police appeal. He and three other men were jailed for a total of 27 years.

Dean Vowles assisted in fraud by pretending to be a pension holder on the phone, enabling withdrawals from the pension fund. He was found guilty of fraud by false representation following a trial.

Daryl Bees, 33, of Kenry Street, Tonypandy, was stopped by police in Tonypandy on February 22 and found carrying 180g of cocaine with a street value exceeding £20,000. Examination of his seized mobile phone revealed messages showing he had been actively involved in supplying cocaine from November 29, 2025.

Deacon Facey was seen by surveillance officers on June 30 looking nervous while straddling a bicycle near City Road, Cardiff. Officers believed a drug transaction was taking place and detained him after he crossed the road to join two men. He was found with a Nokia handset, £55 in cash and pregabalin tablets. A manual trawl of the phone showed messages indicating it was an operational drugs line for crack cocaine and heroin. He later pleaded guilty to being concerned in the supply of crack cocaine and heroin, and to possessing a class C drug.

David Griffiths met two women on dating sites and falsely presented himself as a former Army helicopter pilot with a distinguished military background, claiming a high salary, substantial savings and a valuable home. He persuaded the women to give him money towards fake holidays and other items but spent it on himself, defrauding them of £15,000 in total. One relationship ended after relatives discovered conveyancing documents revealing his fraud; he then misled another woman with similar false claims and took money towards a fake safari holiday. He admitted fraud.