A convicted drug dealer who was already out on licence for similar crimes was caught selling drugs in a Tesco car park after police drove in and spotted him mid-deal.
Matthew Ahern thought he had found a convenient spot to carry out his illegal trade, but his choice of location proved to be his downfall when officers pulled into the car park and the game was immediately up.
Ahern was out of prison on licence at the time, having previously been convicted for similar drug offending. The fact that he had not learned from his earlier brush with the law made his situation considerably worse when he found himself facing the courts once again.
Police spotted Ahern in the Tesco car park and quickly moved in. The circumstances of the stop left little room for doubt about what he had been up to, and he was arrested on the spot.
The case highlights a pattern that courts in Wales see regularly, where offenders released on licence return to the same type of criminal behaviour that landed them in prison in the first place. Selling drugs in busy public spaces like supermarket car parks is a tactic used by street dealers who rely on the constant flow of people coming and going to carry out transactions without drawing too much attention.
On this occasion though, the plan fell apart the moment a police vehicle entered the car park. Ahern had nowhere to go and no way to talk his way out of what officers had witnessed.
Being caught offending while on licence is treated seriously by the courts. Not only does a person face punishment for the new offence, but they also risk being recalled to prison to serve the remainder of their original sentence. For Ahern, the decision to continue dealing drugs while already on licence meant he was facing consequences on two fronts.
The case serves as a reminder that drug dealing in Wales continues to be a persistent problem in everyday public spaces, from car parks to town centres, and that police patrols in these areas do catch people out. For Ahern, a routine drive into a supermarket car park by officers was all it took to bring his dealing to an end.