Dealer who made £50,000 to repay just £1 after offering drugs to police officer

A drug dealer who raked in up to £50,000 selling drugs and was caught after accidentally offering them to a police officer has been ordered to pay back just £1.

Rachel Butcher sent a mass ‘text bomb’ to 76 numbers offering the Class A drug for sale, saying she was willing to deliver.

But the 45-year-old mistakenly included a police officer in the list — using her nickname ‘Red’, which was known to the force.

Cardiff Crown Court heard the number had previously been used to contact police, and the officer was accidentally added to the bulk message.

Police later carried out a raid at an address in Barry, South Wales, where a number of electronic devices were seized, including a Nokia phone.

The handset was described as the ‘Red drugs line’ and had been used between May and July 2024 to send frequent mass texts advertising cocaine.

Butcher’s personal device was recovered and also contained messages linked to the sale of crack cocaine.

After her arrest, Butcher, of Cardiff, initially denied any involvement in drug dealing.

She later admitted being concerned in the supply of Class A drugs and was jailed for 30 months at Cardiff Crown Court in September last year.

This week a Proceeds of Crime hearing heard that despite benefiting by as much as £50,000 from her crimes, she only has £1 available to repay.

Judge Paul Hobson ordered her to pay the nominal sum or face an additional six months in prison.

The court heard Butcher’s life had spiralled following the death of her husband from cancer in 2018, along with further family trauma.

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