Paris Limahl Botting (26) and 20-year-old James Alexander Moore were arrested nine months after committing the crime when police discovered the messages and photographs on their phones.
Officers downloaded the evidence – including numerous messages of how the importation was going to take place – from Moore’s BlackBerry when he was arrested for a separate offence in July 2014. However, they only analysed the information in November of the same year.
Following this, Botting was arrested and his phone, which contained the same messages, was analysed.
The pair, who pleaded guilty to importing the class A drug ecstasy and the class B drug ethylphenidate, a new psychoactive substance, were both given 12 months’ probation and community service by the Royal Court on Friday.
Crown Advocate Conrad Yates said that among the messages, the pair discussed importing ecstasy to Jersey.
Messages revealed that a friend of Moore in the UK posted the drug to the Island hidden on the back of a badge which was on a card.
A photograph of a badge, with five tablets stuck to the back, was also found on Moore’s mobile.
References to ‘sniff’ – which the Crown said was a slang term for ethylphenidate – were also found within the messages.
Advocate Yates said that after placing the order online, Botting sent Moore a screen shot of the order confirmation for 25g of ethylphenidate from the website, for which he paid £140. The screen shot provided a tracking number for the parcel as well as confirming that it would be posted to Moore’s address under the name Colin La Rose.
Advocate Yates said: ‘In discussions between them before the ethylphenidate arrived, Botting explains that 25g of ethylphenidate will be adulterated to make 50g, which would generate £2,500 when sold.’
He added that messages indicated that the pair were intending to adulterate the drug with sugar. The Crown accepted that there was no commercial gain for the importation of the ecstasy.
Botting, who also pleaded guilty to supplying a controlled drug, being concerned in the supply of a controlled drug, two counts of offering to supply a controlled drug and two counts of producing cannabis, was sentenced to 330 hours’ community service.
Advocate Rui Tremoceiro, defending Botting, said that his client’s offending came as he struggled to cope with the death of a number of his friends, adding that the quantity of drugs that were imported were limited.
Advocate Tremoceiro added: ‘He is remorseful. Remorse is easy to state but hard to demonstrate. The key is what he has done since the crimes came to light. Prior to his remand in custody in September he had started to make a change in his life for the better. He was offered and held down a full-time job.’
Moore, who also pleaded guilty to driving without insurance, failing to stop when required by an officer and dangerous driving after his car was found to be dangerous to the public, was sentenced to 290 hours of community service.
Advocate Jane Grace, defending Moore, said that her client committed the drug offences when he was 19 and said that the court should take his age into account.
She added: ‘A period of custody at this time would be detrimental to Mr Moore and his father.
‘He is still in work and is assisting in the support of his father, who has depression.
‘To sentence him to a period of custody would bring him back into contact with people he had sought to distance himself from.’
Addressing the defendants, the Bailiff, William Bailhache, said: ‘You are going to avoid a custodial sentence but we want you both to know how close you’ve come to it.’
Jurats Geoffrey Fisher and Jane Ronge were sitting.
