A Coventry man who made money through drug dealing to fund his gambling addiction has been jailed. Sami Desalegn was told he had ‘wasted his 20s’ by a judge who heard how his addiction had ‘spiralled out of control.’
Police spotted a BMW travelling slowly in the opposite direction on Sky Blue Way shortly before 6pm on July 4. Officers quickly turned around and followed 28-year-old Desalegn.
Desalegn drove down St Margaret Road before turning into Charterhouse Road, where he sped off after realising he was being followed. He then lost control of the BMW, crashed into a Mercedes and fled on foot, Warwick Crown Court heard.
Officers found the damaged BMW on Botoner Road and heard noises coming from a nearby alleyway, Warwick Crown Court heard. Desalegn tried to hide behind a wall before a bag containing two phones was discovered in nearby bushes.
Searches of the BMW uncovered an 8-inch knife, drugs and weighing scales. Officers arrested Desalegn and searched his flat at Samuel Vale House, which contained £13,000 in cash and drugs valued at up to £3,700.
Defending, Simon Hunka said the 28-year-old had become ‘desperate’ as his gambling addiction ‘spiralled out of control’. Desalegn was previously jailed after being found with £77,000 in cash and 2kg of Class A drugs.
Mr Hunka said Desalegn was ‘doing the right kinds of things’ after being released from jail, including getting a job. However, being laid off coincided with him ‘getting down’ mentally, Warwick Crown Court heard.
His Honour Judge Anthony Potter told Desalegn: “What a depressing episode this is. You have wasted most of your 20s.”
Desalegn, of Samuel Vale House, Coventry, was jailed for four years and eight months at Warwick Crown Court on Thursday (July 30). He was also disqualified from driving for three years and eight months.
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