A 24-year-old former Dubbo man has been found guilty for participating in a proposed scheme to smuggle $40,000 worth of buperenorphine strips into Wellington Correctional Centre.
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Mark Gibson, of McFarland Street, Forbes, pleaded guilty to taking part in the supply of a prohibited drug and one count of possessing a prohibited drug at Dubbo Local Court on Wednesday.
According to court documents Gibson was working alongside four co-accused to organise and send 40 buperenorphine strips to an address in Dubbo, with the express intent of introducing the drugs to the Wellington Correctional facility, from which Gibson and the co-accused would all gain financially.
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On July 5, police received information from the correctional intelligence officers at the Wellington Corrections Centre, a maximum security facility, that inmate phone calls of one of the co-accused were being monitored.
Correctives informed police that the inmate was sourcing drugs to be bought into the centre. They were made aware that a package containing the drugs would be sent to Gibson's Aldrin Drive address.
It was then plotted that Gibson would attend a funeral in Condobolin where he was to give the package to an inmate who would be attending the funeral, who would then bring the drugs back in custody upon return to the correctional facility.
The inmate's application to attend the funeral was declined, however another co-accused, the sister of a Wellington prison inmate, posted the package containing the prescription-only opioids to Gibson's address.
Members of the Orana Mid-Western Police District proactive team were notified and attended the Dubbo distribution centre where they seized the package.
Inside the package was a plain envelope, which contained several pieces of paper with sticky tape concealing an item. The paper was slowly cut away and police located 40 suboxone strips in varying strengths. The total weight of the strips combined was 33.6 grams in their packaging.
Warrants were issued and on August 11, Gibson was arrested at his Dubbo home.
When police questioned him about the presence of further drugs in the house, Gibson directed them to his mattress where they located a small clear resealable bag containing a further 10 buperenorphine strips, weighing 0.9 grams.
Gibson was taken to Dubbo Police Station where during an interview he denied all knowledge and involvement in the matter, and insisted the funeral was cancelled and there was no way to get the drugs into the correctional centre.
Police facts said at the time buperenorphine strips are worth upwards of $1000 each due to their lack of supply.
Gibson's defence told the court he had a "sometimes stressful" upbringing and had begun smoking marijuana at the age of 13, and began taking amphetamines at the age of 14.
Since the incident however, the court heard he had "turned his life around completely", was off the drugs, on a methadone program and working in Forbes.
"He admitted to me it's the first time in 10 years that he's been sober," Gibson's defence said.
Magistrate Gary Wilson said Gibson's role in the planned attempt to smuggle drugs into the correctional facility was "at the bottom of the ladder", which helped him avoid full time imprisonment.
"A letter from your employer saying that you're a hard working man, so lets keep it that way and keep off the drugs," magistrate Wilson said.
Magistrate Wilson convicted Gibson and placed him on two community corrections orders for 18 months, subject to supervision. He was also ordered to abstain from alcohol and drugs.