Devonport tattoo artist Mark Raymond Roland given jail time for drug trafficking
A Tasmanian tattoo artist turned drug trafficker beefed up his home security with cameras to protect his drug stash, before police busted him with the substances in his possession. What happened when he finally faced a judge.
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A Devonport tattoo artist who was found guilty of drug trafficking will be spending time behind bars.
Mark Raymond Roland has been sentenced to two years in prison for three counts of trafficking, backdated to June.
He will be eligible for parole after serving half of his jail term.
On July 2, 2020, police found illicit drugs at Roland’s property in Devonport.
Following a search, 38mls of 1,4-butanediol, 30.1 grams of n-ethylpentylone, 4.28 grams of meth, 4.4 grams of MDMA and two grams of cocaine was found.
Justice Tamara Jago said that his property was heavily fortified with cameras and other security measures, which she believed was a measure to protect the drugs that were in his possession.
In passing judgment in the Supreme Court in Burnie, Justice Jago told Roland he had very little insight into the “seriousness of his offending”.
“You continue to maintain that the illicit substances found at your residence did not belong to you,” Justice Jago said.
“You have displayed no remorse, you have not accepted responsibility, and you have demonstrated no insight into the grave consequences of your criminal conduct.
“You are, it seems, willing to profit from the misery drug trafficking causes of others. Many of the drugs found in your possession were not used by you personally.
“The only conclusion is that predominantly, the catalyst for your trafficking was the desire to profit.”
Justice Jago told the court that Roland had been a long-time user of illicit drugs and was still battling meth addiction.
She also noted that he had a long criminal history.
“You have prior convictions for drug-related driving offences and several convictions for possession of various illicit drugs.”
In 2015, Roland was convicted of drug trafficking and sentenced to three years in jail.
Justice Jago noted that since reoffending, he had used rehabilitation services, as indicated in a pre-sentence report.
“You [Roland] told the author of that report that you are hopeful of engaging with alcohol and drug services in the future to assist you in ceasing your methamphetamine use,” Justice Jago said.
“You [Roland] have already done some work with alcohol and drug services between May and October 2023, and your engagement then was described as positive.”
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Originally published as Devonport tattoo artist Mark Raymond Roland given jail time for drug trafficking
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