A 45-year-old man accused of dealing commercial quantities of ice in the Wollongong area has been refused bail.
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Mathew Lawrence Maurice Roy Golding was arrested following a month-long police surveillance that involved some 18,000 intercepted phone calls and text messages.
The tapped conversations allegedly reveal Golding would travel to an upline supplier to purchase anywhere from 56 grams to 112 grams of ice to sell from his place in Mount Saint Thomas to a large customer base.
Golding is accused of supplying 1.038kg of ice between March 23 and April 20, with an estimated street value of up to $520,000.
Documents tendered to Wollongong Local Court show that detectives linked to Strike Force Howley, set up in January to investigate the supply of ice in the city, allegedly identified Golding as a major player with the capacity to buy and sell large amounts of the drug in a short time frame.
The court heard Golding was already serving a 12-month community corrections order for possession of a gun when police investigators started monitoring his phone mid-March, allegedly intercepting thousands of conversations and text messages predominantly to do with the exchange of drugs.
Police allege Golding would either sell large amounts from his home, or use street-level dealers, drivers and runners to complete drug transactions on his behalf.
Police claim Golding had just left a suspected drug den in West Wollongong about 10.30pm on April 14 when they pulled him over and searched his car, finding a plastic bag containing 17.17 grams of ice.
Golding denied knowledge of the drugs and was allowed to leave the scene without charge.
Police swooped again about 6.30am on April 20, stopping Golding as he travelled along Mount Ousley Road in his ute.
While a search of Golding revealed no evidence of drugs, his car was seized.
A subsequent search of the vehicle uncovered a small black magnetic box in a locked tool compartment at the side of the tray of the ute, which allegedly contained a lunch-sized resealable bag with 86g of ice.
Golding was arrested and taken to Wollongong Police Station where he was charged with a host of drug supply offences and remanded in custody.
About half-an-hour later, police raided Golding's home, allegedly seizing drugs, prescription medication, credit cards in various names and a samurai sword.
In court last Wednesday, Golding appeared via video link from jail as his lawyer, Matt Ward, argued for his release on bail.
Mr Ward told the court it was yet to be determined whether Golding was a major player in the drug ring or simply "the puppet that drives from A to B".
He asked Magistrate Claire Girotto to consider his client's workplace injury, relationship breakdown, and mental health and drug issues.
Golding was also flagged as a vulnerable person in custody.
Magistrate Girotto refused the bail request, saying there was nothing to mitigate concerns of Golding committing further offences or endangering the safety of the public if he was released.
The case was adjourned to June 15.
Read more Illawarra court and crime stories here.
