Date set for Digga D cannabis supply hearing

Digga D is one of the UK drill scene's leading artists, with his tracks getting millions of hits online

A date has been set for a hearing to decide if a leading UK drill star was supplying cannabis on "a commercial scale".

Digga D, real name Rhys Herbert, pleaded guilty to drugs charges following a police raid at a property near Lincoln in the early hours of 21 February while broadcasting on Instagram Live.

The 24-year-old has admitted social supply of cannabis but prosecutors maintain there were commercial transactions.

A trial of the issue, known as a Newton Hearing, will take place before a judge at Lincoln Crown Court on 23 December.

Herbert, of Lonsdale Road, Notting Hill, pleaded guilty in May to a charge of smuggling cannabis relating to 11 July 2023. He also admitted supplying cannabis between 26 October 2022 and 21 February 2024.

But the prosecution did not accept the basis of his pleas and barrister Lauren Sales said it was the Crown's case the artist was "supplying cannabis on a commercial scale".

In response, Hebert's defence barrister, James Scobie KC, said the rapper was only involved in social supply of cannabis and any suggestion of commercial transactions were "bravado".

"There was simply no evidence of any wider criminality committed by Mr Herbert," Mr Scobie said.

In July, Lincoln Crown Court was told the quantity of cannabis imported by Herbert was around 3kg (6.6lbs).

On Thursday, Herbert, who remains on remand at HMP Wormwood Scrubs, refused to attend a pre-trial hearing and was represented by Mr Scobie.

A date was set for a judge to determine which party is telling the truth and use that information to decide the sentence.

A Newton Hearing is a legal procedure in English law that occurs when a defendant pleads guilty to a crime but the prosecution and the defendant have conflicting versions of the facts.

Digga D is one of the UK drill's leading performers, with his tracks getting millions of views online.

Drill started in Chicago in the early 2010s but, in recent years, UK artists have adopted the genre.

Follow BBC Lincolnshire on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [e-mail]