Cops use cousins’ selfies in Illawarra drug supply investigation

An Illawarra barber turned reiki healer has faced Wollongong District Court for sentencing, after a selfie with his cousin helped police solve a drug supply investigation.

Wassim Baydoun.

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An Illawarra barber turned reiki healer will spend at least nine months behind bars, after a selfie with his cousin revealed the pair were involved in the supply of illegal drugs in the Illawarra.

Wassim Baydoun, 26, faced Wollongong District Court on September 13, where he was sentenced to a non-parole period of nine months jail, after pleading guilty to drug supply involving 33 grams of methamphetamine and concealing a serious offence.

Baydoun was charged in 2016, almost a year after police executed a search warrant at a North Wollongong apartment and charged his cousin Ali Ibrahim with large commercial drug supply.

During the search, police located drugs stashed in gardens around the apartment block in garden beds and PVC pipes, and also seized Ibrahim’s mobile phone, which uncovered a key piece of evidence tying Baydoun to the crimes.

Court documents revealed police found pictures of the two men together, as well as Baydoun by himself, posing with the drugs hidden in plain view in the background of the photos.

Baydoun was sentenced to a non-parole period of nine months jail.

During the investigation, police also lifted fingerprints from the drugs found stashed around the apartment block, which matched both Baydoun and Ibrahim.

Ibrahim subsequently plead guilty to large commercial drug supply charges, and was jailed for three-and-a-half years in 2017.

On Friday, the court heard Baydoun’s fingerprints were found on one of the plastic resealable bags found by police, which contained just over 33 grams of methamphetamine.

As a result he was charged with drug supply and concealing a serious offence, after failing to inform police of his cousin’s illegal activities.

Baydoun’s case was first brought before the courts in 2016 and set down for trial on two occasions but both times was not reached. He maintained his innocence until August this year, only then changing his plea to guilty.

On Friday, the court heard Baydoun had been in custody since May, and was “keen to rebuild his life” following his release from prison.

It was also revealed that he started using the drug ice in his early 20s to suppress traumatic childhood memories, but curbed the addiction about two years ago when he became a reiki healer.

On Friday Wollongong District Court acting judge Paul Conlon said sentencing Mr Baydoun would be “difficult”, given the Crown’s case was mainly based on Ibrahim’s role, rather than Baydoun.

Judge Conlon said a term of imprisonment was the most appropriate form of sentence, noting that Baydoun did have good rehabilitation prospects.

“He does have reasonable prospects of rehabilitation but that is dependent on his ability to stay away from drugs,” he said.

Judge Conlon sentenced Baydoun to a non-parole period of nine months jail which will expire at the end of the month given time already served.

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