Christian Price pleads guilty to charges of drug supply at his Charlestown home

A Lake Macquarie man who admitted to dealing meth and cannabis has said goodbye to supporters in court as he was immediately taken into custody. Read what happened in court.

Christian Price pleaded guilty to drug supply and was taken into custody on January 25, 2023. Picture: istock

A Lake Macquarie man has said goodbye to family and friends in court as he was taken into custody after he admitted to dealing methylamphetamine and cannabis to a long list of customers.

Christian Andrew Price, 53, was busted by police dealing drugs out of his Charlestown home after detectives from the Hunter Region Enforcement Squad identified him as a person of interest and tapped his phone over a two-month period.

They were investigating the illegal supply of meth throughout the Lake Macquarie and Newcastle regions during December 2021 and January 2022, before arresting Price on January 24 where they searched his motorbike and uncovered a stash of cash and drugs.

At Newcastle Local Court on Wednesday, the 53-year-old pleaded guilty to three charges which included drug supply and supplying drugs on an ongoing basis.

Court documents revealed Price supplied meth to clients on more than 40 occasions, equalling approximately 141 grams.

Christian Price from Charlestown has pleaded guilty to drug supply. Picture: Facebook

He also admitted his guilt to five other charges including three counts of supplying cannabis and one count of supplying gamma hydroxybutyrate and a charge of dealing with the proceeds of crime, which will be taken into account on sentencing.

A number of other charges were also dropped.

His supporters sobbed as he was instantly handcuffed and taken into custody, as Magistrate Caleb Franklin confirmed he’d return to Newcastle District Court next month for a sentence date to be set.

Police facts said Price would communicate with a variety of customers via text and phone calls stating they would meet up for “beers”, in what police believed was a codeword for selling drugs.

“How is bowling going, keen for a beer?” Price said in one of his many text messages.

Price pleaded guilty at Newcastle Local Court on January 25, 2023. Picture: Amy Ziniak

On December 22, 2021, police observed a client arrive in a taxi at Price’s Charlestown home. She spent just minutes there before exiting and a short time later was picked up by officers.

Police facts said they searched the woman before locating a small resealable bag she attempted to conceal in her underwear. She was charged with drug possession.

Court documents also detailed the numerous conversations with clients where Price would ask what they wanted, identifying a quantity and on one occasion he tapped something to his letterbox for a client to collect.

On January 24 police were again watching Price as he arrived at an Edgeworth home before supplying someone with meth to “on-sell” to other people.

Shortly after he left, officers pounced and pulled him over at Garden Suburb. They searched his motorbike and seized $885 in cash – he claimed to win “on the pokies” – before they uncovered a lump in his pocket, which was found to be drugs.

He was arrested and taken to Belmont Police Station before police raided his Charlestown home.