High-level drug dealer Zebulon Treble assaulted while in jail for possessing almost $1m worth of meth

A drug dealer found with nearly $1m worth of meth has been beaten, attacked and threatened with a shiv in jail, a court has heard.

Zebulon Treble appeared in the Adelaide District Court on Friday. Photo: Facebook

A drug dealer in possession of almost $1m worth of methamphetamine was in the throes of addiction when he was arrested, a court has heard.

Zebulon Jarrath Treble appeared in the District Court on Friday where it was heard the 37-year-old has been moved to three different prisons after various assaults since his arrest on April 20, 2023.

He was subsequently charged with engaging in money laundering, traffic in a large commercial quantity of a controlled drug and traffic in commercial quantity of controlled drug.

Prosecutor Tessa Diamandi said Treble was “involved in the upper-end of dealing within the organisation”.

“The value of the 5.1kg of methamphetamine had the potential value of anywhere between half a million to $900,000,” she said.

“The purity of the drugs was around 77 per cent, that was equal to approximately over 50,000 street deals if it had been sold in points, which could potentially have had the worth of anywhere between $2.5m up to $3m.”

Ms Diamandi said more drugs were found at a Woodville North home were potentially worth between $225,000 and $270,000.

Zebulon Treble pleaded guilty to large commercial drug trafficking. Photo: Facebook

“It’s not isolated, it’s against a background of uncharged acts of trafficking,” she said.

“Although it is accepted that the defendant was using drugs and had an addiction at the time, the offending was also largely motivated by profit.”

Marie Shaw KC, for Treble, said since his arrest, her client was abused while imprisoned in Yatala Labour Prison and Mobilong Prison but has since been moved to Mount Gambier Prison.

“He’s been stood over, threatened and assaulted, he’s been threatened by prisoners … he’s had a TV smashed over him … and he was threatened with a shiv,” she said.

Ms Shaw said her client has been battling both a drug and gambling addiction for ten years but has since stopped using drugs.

Ms Shaw said her client had a difficult upbringing and at only nine years old witnessed the murder of his stepfather.

“He was solely raised by his abusive and neglectful mother – a bad alcoholic and an addict,” she said.

Ms Shaw said she would not be making submissions that Treble shouldn’t serve a term of imprisonment and it was accepted the offending was not isolated.

Treble will return to the District Court in July for sentencing.