Court Report: 21/09/2020 @ Snaresbrook Crown Court
I’m in Courtroom 8 before Her Honour Judge G Amakye for the sentencing of Mr Richard Yassin, 50, who has pleaded guilty to two drug related matters at the magistrates’ court. These are before the Crown Court for Sentencing today.
Count 1: Possession with intent to supply class A drugs (Cocaine)
Count 2: Possession of Class B drugs (Cannabis)
Mr Lewis, representing the Crown opens the case by telling the court that on 24th October 2019 the defendant was in a drug induced psychosis at home and called the police himself. When the police eventually entered the property a large amount of drug paraphernalia was seen, and Mr Yassin was promptly arrested.
We are told a search by police revealed a bowl of “loose white powder” and some £3000 in cash. Count 1 concerned approx. 30g of cocaine. A small amount of cannabis was also found.
The prosecution submits the defendant was operating as a “one man band” rather than as part of a larger operation, mainly dealing to friends and associates in the form of “party packs” to raise money to feed his own habit.
The crown requests the forfeiture and destruction of the drugs and forfeiture of the cash and submits that as Mr Yassin fulfilled a “Greater Role” in the offence he should face a starting point of 4yr 6 months’ custody.
In mitigation Mr Morris, representing the defendant, tells the court that they may well be “surprised that a 50 year old man of previous good character” stands before them.
He continues by saying that Richard Yassin’s addiction got out of control and a suspended sentence would “not only be the most just but most constructive way of dealing with individual”. Sending him to prison would only cause him to relapse his drug use we’re told and that he has remained substance free since his arrest.
Mr Morris tells the court he considers that the defendant in fact played a “lessor role” within the context of the sentencing guidelines and this leads to a starting point of some 3 years.
The defendant was initially held on remand for a period of 7 weeks before Christmas and found the experience “harrowing”.
The judge in summing up recognises the “full and frank admissions” made in his first police interview. The court has reflected on his role and finds he did indeed play a lessor role in the offence.
The judge calls the dealing of Class A drugs a “very serious” matter and one which no doubt crosses the custody threshold.
After applying a 33% discount for a guilty plea at the first opportunity the court imposes a sentence of 16 months suspended for 2 years. In deciding to sentence the judge considers the virtue of the mitigating factors and the conditions imposed by the “persisting pandemic”.
Mr Yassin also has to complete 150 hours of unpaid work and the court orders the £3,000 be given to the Metropolitan Police in order that they can “fight crime”.
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