Drug dealer photographed himself with bags of cannabis and crown of £20 notes

A dopey drug dealer was caught out after taking pictures of himself wearing a crown made of £20 notes with a bag of drugs hanging from his mouth. Other images found on Ayub Hagos’ mobile phone included piles of cash, guns, knives and white powder. The 19-year-old was arrested after police found heroin and crack cocaine in the flat he was staying at in Oxford Road, Southsea.



He denied having anything to do with the drugs but when police found the photographs on his phone Hagos realised the game was up and changed his plea. He was jailed for three-and-a-half years at Portsmouth Crown Court. His barrister Alexander Thompson said Hagos had been naive. ‘He took the photographs as bravado to make himself seem more important in front of his peers,’ he said.

‘It’s incredibly naive for a sophisticated drug dealer to have these sort of photographs on his phone.’ The court heard Hagos had been found with 23 wraps of crack cocaine, with a street value of £920, and 11 wraps of heroin, worth £440. Police also found a knuckle-duster and £500 cash in his bag. Prosecutor Matthew Lawson said: ‘The crown would certainly say it’s an overwhelming case. The photographs are such that the defendant would have had difficulty in disassociating himself with the drugs.’



Hagos, of Church Manorway, Abbey Wood, south east London, pleaded guilty to two counts of possessing a class A drug with intent to supply following his arrest in October last year. The court heard he had previous convictions for possessing cannabis and assault. Sentencing him Judge Richard Price said: ‘You came down from London with class A drugs, crack cocaine and heroin, to sell in this city. I am satisfied that’s the sole purpose of your visit to this city. You are more than a street dealer, you are a supplier to those who sell on the streets. ‘I am entirely satisfied that in all the circumstances of this case you played a significant role.’