Three people who fabricated a story to attempt to get a more lenient sentence for a convicted drug dealer have been sentenced for attempting to pervert the course of justice.
Swindon Crown Court heard how 30-year-old Gavin Quinn, whilst remanded in custody after being arrested by Wiltshire Police on suspicion of being Concerned in the Supply of Class A drugs, conspired with David Hewitt, 41, and Andi Chittell-Gilholm, 34.
They attempted to convince the court that Chittell-Gilholm, who was pregnant at the time, was Quinn’s partner and was carrying his child.
In reality, she had never met him and had been promised £500 cash by Hewitt if she would pose as Quinn’s partner and tell the court of the impact that sentencing would have on her, in order to get Quinn a lighter sentence. Chittell-Gilholm received only £50 from Hewitt.
The conspiracy was uncovered by police whilst Quinn was given a 32-month jail sentence for being concerned in the supply of Class A drugs when he appeared before Swindon Crown Court in August last year.
The sentence was unaffected by the false narrative attempted.
At a separate hearing in Salisbury Crown Court, all three admitted conspiracies to pervert the course of justice.
Quinn, from Weston-Super-Mare, was handed a 10-month prison sentence, and Hewitt, from Portishead, received eight months’ imprisonment.
Chitttell-Gilholm from Portbury in Somerset was given a four-month prison sentence, suspended for two years.
Wiltshire Police Det Con Charlie Forster said: “This was a deliberate attempt to present the court with false information in order to attempt to reduce the sentence given to Quinn.
"This is a serious matter, and it is right that they have faced the consequences of conspiring to pervert the course of justice in this way.”
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