'Jersey's premier florist' sentenced to four years in prison

A Jersey florist has been sentenced to four years in jail for importing drugs into the island for personal use.

Mark Howe, described in Court as 'Jersey's Premier Florist', pleaded guilty to nine out of ten counts of importing Class A and C drugs, including cocaine, Crystal meth and diazepam in September.Mr Howe first came to the attention of the authorities when customs officers intercepted a special postage package addressed to him on 20th September last year, which contained methylamphetamin , also known as 'crystal meth'.

On the 5th of November he was then stopped on arrival from Gatwick, where his bags were searched, revealing quantities of cocaine, methylamphetamine  and valium.An investigation into his mobile phone and financial records found a total of some 30 postal orders had been placed with a London contact between January 2018 and October 2019. Over that period he had imported 54.5g methylamphetamin usually in one of two grams packages. In total he had imported drugs with an estimated value of £6079.19.The court heard how Mr Howe had grown up in a sheltered environment in Northern Ireland, where he had had no exposure to drink or drugs.He had his first drink aged 21, and his first experience with drugs at the age of 43 following the death of his best friend and the end of a relationship.The court also heard how his drug habit had initially been confined to the London party scene but that trips to London became more frequent as his habit grew more severe. Eventually he started importing drugs into the island, on person and by postal delivery.Advocate Mike Preston for the defence, argued that this was a 'highly exceptional case', where the defendant would be better served with a treatment order and 300-400 hours of community service.

Advocate Preston also made the point that Mr Howe had been abstinent from drugs for nearly a year, and the way in which he had turned his life around should be taken into account when sentencing.In passing sentence Sir William Bailhache, sitting with three jurats, said the fact he was importing it for his own use was a significant part of the mitigation. However, he said:  

The prosecution had asked for five years and six months  for the Class A importations. The defence, on the other hand, sought to have the sentence reduced to a treatment order combined with community service equivalent to a 2-3 year jail sentence.   They chose to use a starting point of nine years, based on the fact that the quantities in question were on the lower end of the scale. Mr Howe's guilty plea entitled him to an immediate reduction of 1/3, reducing it to six years. Despite further personal mitigation factors, however, Sir William said 'we cannot see it appropriate to find a sentence of less than four years imprisonment'.Mr Howe himself, attended the hearing via video link from H.M.P. La Moye, where he has been remanded in custody since 4th September