An aspiring grime artist turned cannabis dealer posed with fake bundles of cash, fake Rolex watches and his brother's Lamborghini. Ian Farrell used his Instagram account to provide an 'exaggerated view' of his lifestyle and give the impression he was a 'successful and reliable source of drugs'.
But Birmingham Crown Court was told in reality the 24-year-old from Moseley did not actually have that much money and was using his own social media to advertise for others in return for large amounts of cannabis, which he smoked. Farrell, of Cadine Gardens, admitted being concerned in the supply of class B drugs.
On Friday, March 22 he was sentenced to 24 months, although he had already been recalled to prison on licence from a previous robbery conviction. Farrell was involved in selling cannabis between April 28 last year and January 12 this year when police arrested him at his flat. They recognised images from his social media had been taken at the address and they found bags of cannabis as well as advertising stickers with a QR code link to the site that sold drugs.
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Officers also recovered a counterfeit Rolex watch, resealable bags with different strains of cannabis branded on them, scales, a large amount of designer clothes and a set of car keys which Farrell claimed belonged to his brother.
Investigators established his telephone number was used to control the various drugs channels. Images from the phone indicated the supply of cannabis while his Instagram page showed him holding large bundles of cash and wearing Rolex watches.
On Snapchat Farrell pictured himself driving a Lamborghini and holding large stashes of cannabis with the caption 'pound on pound'. Similar posts were found on a Telegram channel where he stated he was 'active', considered to be a common phrase among drug dealers to indicate they are available to supply.
Recorder Ben Mills said: "All of this was at the very least to give the impression you were a successful and a reliable source of drugs."
He described the operation as 'fairly sophisticated' and 'far more than low level'. Recorder Mills added: "You have made efforts to be a relatively successful grime artist. In other ways you are capable of being a decent person, working hard and carving out a good way of life. You have thrown that all away by involving yourself in the supply of cannabis."
Ekwall Tiwana, defending, told the court Farrell was a grime artist with a 'relatively low following' on social media, albeit he had 'played in front of a lot of people'. He argued he was portraying an 'exaggerated view' of himself and clarified that the Lamborghini belonged to his brother.
Mr Tiwana said: "He didn't have a large amount of money. The money was used as a prop. Effectively it was wrapped around real money.
"It was all about image on these channels, all about exaggerating an image and this is what he did. Because of that and because he had been a smoker of cannabis these large scale platforms asked him to advertise. That's what he did."
He explained Farrell's Instagram provided a link to the Telegram account where drugs were supplied and added: "The supplier is the person or the firm which is in the leading role. He is simply advertising strains of cannabis. In return he got cannabis, quite large amounts. It is a significant role."
