A 26-year-old woman who repeatedly drove a man to pick up drugs in Sydney to then sell around Dubbo, has told a court she only did it out of fear for her safety.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Deanna Rose Morris fronted Dubbo Local Court on Wednesday pleading guilty to one count of take part in the supply of prohibited drug.
In court documents, police said Morris came to their attention after multiple reports were made to Crime Stoppers about the supply of prohibited drugs in the Dubbo region.
READ ALSO:
A strike force was established by police which tracked the movements of Morris and a man she knew.
According to police, Morris and the man had travelled from Dubbo to Sydney 13 times between April and July last year, before they were busted.
On July 25, police stopped Morris and the man in Geurie where they discovered 88.7 grams of methamphetamine - also known as ice - in the vehicle.
According to police, the drugs found in Morris' possession held a street value of $88,000.
Morris initially denied she knew about the drugs in the car, but later pleaded guilty to knowingly take part in the supply of prohibited drug, after forensic analysis confirmed her fingerprints were on the bags of drugs located.
When Morris' co-accused was denied bail, she was the first person he called.
During this call, which was monitored by police, the man told Morris to go into his mother's bedroom and get rid of three packages.
Police searched the home, and located a safe which was required to be opened by a locksmith. Police found two bundles of cash inside resealable bags.
During the search Morris and another woman were caught on CCTV at the South Dubbo Tavern putting "a lot" of money through the poker machines.
Police said this was commonly known as "cleaning money".
"By gambling it and pulling the money out to make it appear as though large amounts of money were lawfully obtained," police said in court documents.
In court on Wednesday, defence lawyer Kate Renehan said Morris' involvement in the operation was minimal as the driver, and it was her then-partner who was the "mastermind of the operation".
"It seems to be a relationship of coercion, where she felt she had no other option based on the fear of retaliation of what he would do," she said.
The court heard Morris was 32 weeks pregnant and had been making arrangements and plans to be a responsible mother. A letter from the Western NSW Local Health District was tendered in court which confirmed she was taking steps to be on a program for new mothers.
Magistrate Gary Wilson said Morris knew what she was doing was wrong, despite fearing for her safety.
"At the end of the day you still had a choice, you had full knowledge of what you were doing," he said.
"Most of the crime in this town is fuelled by drugs or alcohol, the last thing we need is more drugs in this town."
Magistrate Wilson said if it wasn't for Morris' limited criminal record she would be sent to jail.
"A message has to be sent out to the community that this offending is not tolerated," he said.
"Just because you're an expectant mother, that certainly in the past hasn't stopped me from imposing full time imprisonment."
Morris was convicted and sentenced to an intensive corrections order for 18 months - a jail term served in the community. She was also ordered to complete 150 hours of community service work.
The co-accused remains before the court.