A Tasmanian man who sold drugs from his home while on bail for earlier trafficking offences has been sentenced to two years and nine months in prison.
A Supreme Court jury unanimously found Mark Raymond Roland, 57, guilty of trafficking methylamphetamine, cocaine, MDMA, cannabis and 1,4-butanediol.
The charge covered drug sales between August 2021 and May 2022.
Justice Tamara Jago said police found a phone in an outbuilding that housed Roland’s tattoo studio during a search in August 2021.
Messages on the phone showed Roland discussing bulk discounts and restocking after he sold out. Jago said he sold drugs to other dealers and directly to users.
Roland told the jury other people used the phone and that messages referring to him were about sales of a legal supplement.
Jago described his explanation as “fanciful and entirely contrived”.
Police returned in May 2022 and found cash and more drugs. They also found a firearm hidden in a cavity by the rear fence.
Jago said Roland used cameras, motion sensors and locked gates to protect the drugs and monitor people coming onto the property.
It was the third time Roland had been convicted of drug trafficking.
Jago acknowledged that Roland had sought drug and alcohol counselling after his release from prison in August 2025, but said that given his age and long involvement with drugs, his prospects of rehabilitation carried little weight.
“In my view, the nature, scale and extent of your drug trafficking demands a substantial sentence of imprisonment,” she said.
“You have demonstrated no insight or remorse and have shown a complete indifference to the harm your criminal conduct has caused.”
Sentencing him on October 20, Jago ordered Roland to forfeit $40,790 in drug proceeds.
His sentence was backdated to August 24 and he will be eligible for parole after serving 20 months.
