Drug-dealing male model, 34, who fled UK, taunted police on social media with pictures of his playboy lifestyle but was jailed after cops tracked him down in Cambodia, is ordered to pay back £31,000
- A drug dealer who fled justice has been ordered to pay back over £31,000
- Terrence Murrell, 33, absconded ahead of his trial for supplying steroids
- He was sentenced for 37 months in his absence at Caernarfon Crown Court
- Detectives tracked him down and arrested him after he arrived in Cambodia
- He was jailed for an extra three months in prison having earlier absconded
A fugitive British drug dealer who was jailed after two years on the run in Asia has been ordered to pay back £31,702 or face an additional 15 months on his 39-month sentence.
Fugitive Terrence Murrell, 33, was given an extra four months on top of his three-year jail term for dealing steroids in February for fleeing Britain to the paradise island Bali – a crime for which he has been forced to pay back his profits.
Fugitive Terrence Murrell, 33, was given an extra four months on top of his three-year jail term in February for fleeing Britain to the paradise island Bali.
Murrell went on the run before he was due to be sentenced. But instead of keeping a low-profile in Indonesia, Murrell taunted police with constant updates on social media.
Prosecutor Sarah Badrawy told a Proceeds of Crime Hearing that Murrell had benefited by £31,702.18 from his crimes – and North Wales Police already had those assets.
His Honour Timothy Petts ordered Murrell to repay the £31,702.18 within three months or face an extra 15 months imprisonment.
He said: ‘I’m very pleased that the matters have been agreed and I make a confiscation order in the terms proposed for payment of £31,702.18.
‘That follows in the usual way an extensive investigation into what Mr Murrell received from his crimes and his available assets.’
The judge added that the police are allowed to come back to court to try to recover more money if they discover other assets in future.
While on the run, Terrence Murrell (pictured) mocked police updating his Facebook and Instagram pages with smirking pictures in the sunshine
His Honour Timothy Petts ordered Murrell (pictured after his arrest in Bali) to repay the £31,702.18 within three months or face an extra 15 months imprisonment
A court heard Murrell was a leading member of a £2million steroid gang who shipped drugs from China to the UK to sell.
Murrell mocked police updating his Facebook and Instagram pages with smirking pictures in the sunshine.
He captioned one picture with friends: ‘The baddest men in Bali.’
He also posed for pictures in an infinity pool, working out in a gym and using his laptop in a four-poster bed.
Many of the snaps were captioned: ‘Boss life.’
He eventually returned to the UK after he left Bali and arrived in Cambodia.
British police won permission to travel to Cambodia to bring him back to the UK to start his time behind bars.
A court heard Murrell was a leading member of a £2million steroid gang who shipped drugs from China to the UK to sell
He told police he bought the drugs for himself as he ‘wanted to look his best as a male model’
After his arrest a North Wales Police spokesman said: ‘People think they can escape justice by leaving the country, but the arrest of Murrell demonstrates that we will we pursue offenders and take the necessary steps to track them down’
A court heard Murrell was a leading member of a £2million steroid gang who shipped drugs from China to the UK to sell.
He told police he bought the drugs for himself as he ‘wanted to look his best as a male model’.
But prosecutor Sarah Badrawy said bank accounts showed Murrell had pocketed more than £220,000.
He later admitted supplying class C drugs in North Wales through websites but failed to turn up for a sentencing hearing at Caernarfon Crown Court.