Man jailed for 12 years for supplying cutting agents

10 December 2010

A man who used his online chemical supply business to knowingly sell 17 tonnes of cutting agents to UK drug traffickers has been sentenced to 12 years in prison. The profits generated for the illegal drugs trade by cutting Class A drugs with this quantity of chemicals would be in excess of half a billion pounds.

David John Wain, of Hayes in London, ran his chemical supply business, Sourceachem, from a garage at his mother’s house. He supplied huge quantities of phenacetin, lidocaine, procaine, paracetamol and benzocaine but couldn’t provide details of any legitimate customers. All these chemicals are commonly mixed with illegal drugs to maximise dealers’ profits and in doing so significantly increase the quantity and availability of drugs like cocaine across the UK.

SOCA’s prosecution was a result of Wain’s persistent refusal to stop supplying chemicals to those with no legitimate use for them. He was warned of the potential consequences of his activities and had numerous opportunities to change his business practices before SOCA determined that the only way to stop him was to bring the case to court.

First ever convictions for supplying “legal high” GBL

While on bail facing charges for conspiracy to supply controlled drugs, Wain switched from cutting agents to dealing in the “legal high” Gamma-Butyrolactone (GBL), knowing it was being purchased for human consumption - even when a regular customer fell into a coma after taking it.

This highly addictive industrial solvent was classified as a Class C drug in December 2009, making it an offence to import, possess or supply it for human consumption. Wain continued to supply GBL after this date, marking the drug’s new illegal status only by raising his prices, and stating ‘not for human consumption’ on the bottle.

After taking GBL in February this year, a regular customer of Wain’s fell into a coma. His mother “begged” Wain to stop supplying it to her son but as soon as he recovered Wain sold him more. He also supplied chloroform to people he had good reason to suspect of having criminal intent. One customer asked for it to be delivered in discreet packaging so his wife would not know what he had bought. Another ordered a litre on condition that Wain could also supply ‘the antidote’.

SOCA’s Trevor Symes said:

“David Wain helped the illegal drugs trade make hundreds of millions of pounds of profit. There is no doubt that the quantity of cutting agents he was dealing would have had an impact on the availability and purity of cocaine on the streets of the UK and brought the price down to a level which made it accessible to more users.

“He showed a complete lack of conscience about the harm he caused, and the harm he enabled others to cause through his criminal business.

“Anyone else out there who thinks supplying the illegal drug trade with chemicals is a safe and profitable activity should start worrying. SOCA kept on till we stopped David Wain and we will do the same to you”.