TWO men who ran a drug-dealing operation across Swansea city centre have been jailed after undercover police caught them in an Audi TT sports car.
Darren Jones orchestrated the supply of crack cocaine, Valium, cannabis and amphetamine across the city, while Simon Griffiths acted as his driver and what a judge later described as his “trusted ally” in the criminal enterprise.
Their operation came crashing down on August 28 last year when plain clothes officers spotted what appeared to be a drug exchange outside the Swansea Foyer building.
As officers approached the parked Audi and identified themselves, Griffiths grabbed an officer’s arm as they reached for the ignition keys. A struggle followed and Griffiths managed to start the car, driving around two feet and dragging the officer with him before being stopped.
Police recovered a wrap of crack cocaine from the driver’s footwell and a cannabis cigarette from the passenger area. Jones was carrying £150 in cash.
A subsequent raid at Jones’ home in Manselton uncovered quantities of cocaine, crack cocaine, amphetamine and cannabis resin, along with weighing scales and snap-seal bags contaminated with drug residue.
The court heard Jones’ mobile phone contained a large number of messages linked to the supply of a range of drugs over an eight-month period, while Griffiths’ phone showed his involvement in securing vehicles used in the operation.
Swansea Crown Court was told the pair had amassed nearly 300 criminal convictions between them.
Jones, 44, of Phillip Street, Manselton, had twenty previous convictions for forty-three offences and was already on a suspended sentence when he was caught dealing.
Griffiths, 50, of High Street, Swansea city centre, had forty-one previous convictions for 236 offences and was still on licence from a 45-month prison sentence for burglary when he became involved in the operation.
Defence barrister Giles Hayes said Jones had grown up around drugs and started young with cannabis before progressing to amphetamine and cocaine. He told the court: “He has had a difficult 30 years struggling to make ends meet and struggling with addictions.”
Andrew Evans, representing Griffiths, said his client had “unusually at his advanced age” developed a Class A drug addiction in summer 2025, and that his role had been peripheral and limited to August.
Passing sentence, Judge Geraint Walters said both men were committed to lives of crime and had made themselves a nuisance in their community.
He said Jones had been the “business leader”, supplying drugs to users across Swansea, while Griffiths had played a supporting role as his driver.
The judge added that drug suppliers bring misery to users and communities alike.
Jones was sentenced to three years and four months in prison, while Griffiths received two years and eight months. Both will serve up to half their sentences in custody before being released on licence.
