Zachariah Gloury-Hyde blames drug dealing on disability compo
A cashed-up drug dealer who operated a sophisticated racket out of his Collins St apartment has blamed the injuries he sustained in a car crash for his life spiralling out of control.
Melbourne City
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A cashed-up drug dealer has been spared up to 15 years in jail after a court heard the gut wrenching tale of how his life spiralled out of control following a horrific accident left him permanently disabled.
In 2014 Zachariah Gloury-Hyde was in a serious crash while sitting in the back of a friends car, suffering injuries that changed his life dramatically.
Gloury-Hyde suffered a brain injury and cognitive impairment resulting in chronic pain and extensive physical limitations.
It took several surgeries to be able to use his left arm and hand and continued to suffer chronic pain.
The court heard he turned to pain killers, which quickly escalated to heavy drug use.
He received an $800,000 TAC settlement in March 2017 and spent the better part of $85,000 on methylamphetamine.
On April 23, 2018 he and his co-accused girlfriend checked into a short stay apartment on 586 Collins St for one month.
When police raided the apartment on May 14 they found drugs spread out in every corner.
Investigators found zip lock bags containing white crystal substance on the lounge coffee table, three sets of scales and a glass pipe containing a clear fluid, 43 vials adrenaline injection and a syringe plunger.
They also found Alprax pills, several kilograms of 1,4-butanediol, endone tablets and two unlicensed firearms – a .22 long rifle calibre Anschutz brand bolt action repeating rifle and a 7mm-08 Remington calibre Tikka brand bolt action rifle.
A further $10,305 in cash was found at the apartment.
Gloury-Hyde was charged and bailed from the Melbourne Magistrates Court on May 14, 2018 before reoffending one week later when police found drugs on him he had planned to sell.
The amount of ice was nine times the threshold weight required to establish he was trafficking.
The court heard the 25-year-old has been drug free for two-and-a-half years.
County Court Judge Riddell commended the progress Gloury-Hyde had made, but said drug dealers could not go unpunished.
“Many people come before this court suffering the effects of the ravages of drug addiction, enabled by other people trafficking,” she said.
“I hear evidence from parents who talk of the destruction of their once bright boys, given in to substance use.
“This is why those who traffic drugs must be dealt with sternly.”
Gloury-Hyde appeared at the county court on 14 September where he pleaded guilty to four charges including trafficking in a drug of defence – commercial quantity, knowingly dealing with proceeds of crime and possession of a drug of dependence.
His repeated trafficking could have seen him carry out a maximum penalty of 15 years in jail.
He was sentenced to 84 days’ imprisonment plus a three year community correction order and fined $500.
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Contact Grace at grace.mckinnon@news.com.au