Leeds plumber who struggled to get work after drug-dealing conviction returned to selling crack

Levon Halliday was jailed in 2017 for conspiracy to sell crack and heroin following an undercover police sting, and has been handed another lengthy sentence this week.

Leeds Crown Court heard that police had been called to Henconner Lane in Bramley at around 2pm on February 19 where Halliday was arrested for an unrelated matter. However, he raised suspicion because he had two mobile phones on him, £360 in cash and a small amount of cannabis.

His home address on Greenhill Bungalows, Gamble Hill, was searched and a jar containing 258 wraps of crack cocaine was found in his living room. They also recovered a book of contact numbers and a notebook containing the weights of drugs, prosecutor Alisha Kaye told the court.

The 40-year-old was interviewed and mainly gave no-comment answers, but did claim the drugs were not his and other people had access to his home. He later admitted dealing in class A drugs, and possession of a class B drug. He appeared in court this week via a video link from HMP Leeds where he was being held on remand.

The court heard he had an "extensive record", including the conspiracy to supply drugs from 2017. He was given 54 months' jail. He had been trusted with a "drugs line" - the phone number on which addicts would call to buy their next fix - while the head of the operation was on holiday.

Mitigating for his latest offending, Kara Frith said: "He knows it's immediate custody. He struggled with employment and gave into temptation, but he was not living a luxurious lifestyle.

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"There was no money at the address and he was driving a 14-year-old vehicle. He is a qualified plumber but could not find employment, in part because of his record. It's not an excuse, people who fall on hard times do not resort to drug dealing."

Judge Tahir Khan KC gave him a sentence of 45 months and told him: "You position is made more serious because of your record of convictions. It was not a huge operation and I'm sure you were not earning lots of money, but it was street dealing and you were running your own operation. A custodial sentence of some length is inevitable."