A Wellington solar farm worker who was busted driving while under the influence of drugs has been sentenced after leading police to his personal "stockpile" of MDMA, LSD and cannabis oil he bought from the "dark web".
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Nicolas Damian Cristobal Fida, 27, came to police attention after he was spotted driving slowly along Cobra Street at about 3.30 am on August 16 last year.
The 27-year-old returned a negative alcohol test, but after police noticed Cristobal Fida had dilated pupils and was speaking slowly, they asked if he had drugs in the car.
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Initially Cristobal Fida denied having drugs in the car, however later told them "yes, weed" when asked again.
According to court documents, police discovered 16 tablets in a resealable bag under a seat in the car, before Cristobal Fida handed over another two bags containing cannabis.
He made admissions to owning the substances and said as well as using the drugs himself, he exchanged the drugs with other people to obtain more for his own use.
"I give it to others and myself," he told police.
Police said Cristobal Fida denied selling and receiving cash or money for supplying drugs.
Further inquiries were made and police went to Cristobal Fida's home in Wellington to conduct a search.
Inside his bedroom, police found 126 MDMA tablets and 80 LSD tablets wrapped in foil. They also located two jars of cannabis oil.
Cristobal Fida told police he had sourced the drugs online from the "dark web".
Cristobal Fida was charged and pleaded guilty to three counts of supplying a prohibited drug, and two counts of possess a prohibited drug. He was sentenced in Dubbo Local Court on Wednesday.
Defence lawyer Vinith Vijay said the 27-year-old was from Uruguay and in Australia on a working visa.
Mr Vijay told the court Cristobal Fida had been using MDMA four times a week, and had been diagnosed with a mild substance abuse disorder and depression.
The court heard the 27-year-old had begun using cannabis when he was 18, and had only shared the drugs from his "large stockpile" he had for personal use.
"He tells me that in his home country of Uruguay cannabis has been legal for the past five years," Mr Vijay said.
"It doesn't appear that he was making commercial gain from sharing the drugs with his friends and work colleagues."
Mr Vijay said he had been working at the solar farm in Wellington for the past two years, and his work was "quite laborious".
"He works between 12 to 14 hours and to relieve himself he undertakes [using] recreational substances to relive that side of work stress," he said.
The court heard he had attended a number of drug and alcohol programs, including the Smart Recovery program.
"Old habits do die hard," Mr Vijay said.
"He doesn't have a record in NSW or overseas, and he's quite scared about what will happen."
Magistrate Gary Wilson said these were "very serious offences" and Cristobal Fida had "significant amounts" of MDMA and acid in his possession.
Magistrate Wilson convicted and sentenced Cristobal Fida to a 15-month intensive correctional order, a jail term to be served in the community, and ordered him to abstain from drugs.