Judge Warns Teen He Is Trading Youth for Years Behind Bars

A teenager who had previously served time for drug offenses quickly found himself back in the same cycle, returning to familiar influences and resuming his role in the supply of illegal substances, as revealed in court proceedings. Judge Paul Thomas KC addressed 19-year-old Liam Devois, warning him that by the time he completes his new sentence, he will have lost years that are often considered the most formative and rewarding of a person’s life, years he will never recover. The judge remarked, “It’s down to your stupidity that you returned to drug dealing after being released,” and posed the question of whether Devois “would be so stupid as to return to it again” in the future.
Devois’s advocate explained to Swansea Crown Court that his client had left custody “with the best of intentions” and initially secured employment with the council, but after losing his job, he gravitated back toward an “older and negative peer group.” The advocate added that Devois now recognizes the shame he has brought upon his family. The case highlights a common pattern among young offenders in the UK, where research by the Ministry of Justice indicates that nearly 40% of young people released from custody reoffend within a year, often due to lack of support, employment challenges, and the persistent influence of criminal networks.
Prosecutor Georgia Donohue detailed how police, during an unrelated investigation, discovered incriminating messages on a seized phone referencing a contact known as “LD cheap powder,” leading them to Devois. A subsequent search of his home uncovered ketamine, cannabis, drug paraphernalia, and a shed containing white powder, empty bags, and a Nokia phone. Analysis of Devois’s phone revealed bulk text messages advertising cocaine, ketamine, and cannabis for sale since January 2025, as well as a “tick list” of debts, and videos of him driving a Nissan X Trail in Swansea, corroborating police intelligence reports about his activities in the community.
Liam Devois, from Robert Street, Manselton, Swansea, admitted to multiple charges including being concerned in the supply of cocaine, ketamine, and cannabis, possession with intent to supply, simple possession, and driving without insurance or a valid license. He had previously been sentenced in June 2024 to 31 months in a young offenders institution for acting as a courier and street-level dealer for his cousins, both known drug dealers. After his release in September, Devois’s brief attempt at legitimate employment was derailed by job loss, and he was soon recalled to detention following his arrest, with a release date now set for November next year.
Judge Thomas emphasized that Devois’s choices had cost him significant years of his youth, stating, “Those are some of the best years of a person’s life and you will never get them back.” With credit for guilty pleas, Devois received a four-year sentence in a young offenders institution, serving up to half in custody before being released on license. The case underscores the ongoing struggle to break the cycle of youth reoffending in the UK, with experts calling for more robust post-release support and community intervention programs to help young people like Devois avoid returning to criminal activity.