Jacob Stephen Conway sentenced in Rockhampton Court for drug trafficking

A court has heard how a young dad had a break in his marijuana trafficking business before starting up again and adding meth to his stock.

A young dad has been jailed after police uncovered his street level drug trafficking business.

A court has heard how a young dad trafficked drugs for seven months while unemployed, adding meth to his business just weeks after an initial search by police.

Jacob Stephen Conway, 23, pleaded guilty in Rockhampton Supreme Court to drug trafficking, possessing marijuana and possessing more than two grams of meth.

Between October 2021 and May 2022 Conway ran his “unsophisticated” drug trafficking business, predominantly dealing marijuana.

The court heard most of Conway’s trafficking was at “street level”, but on some occasions he sold marijuana for “onselling”.

Conway’s home was searched in February 2022, where police found marijuana and a number of other items including scales and a grinder.

The court heard there was then a break in Conway’s trafficking until April, when he then also sold methamphetamine for a period of three weeks.

Police searched Conway’s home again in May where they found more drugs, this time meth and marijuana.

Conway’s customers would usually pay in cash, but he accepted payments through payment platform pay ID from time to time.

An analysis of Conway’s phone showed he supplied marijuana on 73 occasions and meth on 12.

On May 14, police found Conway slumped over the steering wheel of his car at the intersection of Yaamba Rd and River Rose Drive.

He was taken to the watch house and searched, with officers finding a small clip-seal bag of meth under a compression bandage on his thigh.

Crown prosecutor Cameron Keast told the court Conway’s offending breached a probation order he received for an offence that was dealt with in the magistrates court.

Mr Keast said correspondence with the probation and parole office revealed Conway’s engagement with that order had been “unsatisfactory”.

He said Conway had spent 16 months in custody on remand for the offending.

Conway’s barrister Jordan Ahlstrand told the court his client was a young Dad, who had a good upbringing and employment background.

Mr Ahlstrand said during the trafficking period Conway had not used or threatened violence and co-operated with police during their investigations.

He said Conway had used his time in prison to rehabilitate but staying off the drugs, doing courses and working in the laundry.

The court heard the trafficking was Conway’s first serious offence, with his time on remand his first time in jail.

Justice Graeme Crow took into account Conway’s plea of guilty and that it came at an early opportunity.

He told Conway the offence of trafficking was so serious it carried a maximum sentence of 25 years behind bars.

Justice Crow said if Conway had been trafficking meth for longer than three weeks he would be considering a longer prison term.

He also took into account Conway’s efforts to rehabilitate and his good upbringing.

Conway was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment with an immediate parole release as 508 days of presentence custody was declared as time already served.