Elle Taylor, 28, was jailed for three years after admitting cocaine supply, proceeds of crime and wilfully exposing a child to harm – the young girl was rushed to A&E after ingesting the class A drug
A mum who dealt drugs and amassed £200,000 while employing a teenage boy as her courier has been sentenced to prison.
Elle Taylor, 28, dispatched the young lad to distribute her cocaine up to 20 times a day in Fife. She also neglected a young girl under her care who subsequently consumed a class A drug.
This week, she was handed a three-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to charges related to proceeds of crime, cocaine supply, and wilfully exposing a child in a manner likely to cause unnecessary suffering at Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court last month. During the sentencing hearing, Sheriff John MacRitchie characterised her crimes as “absolutely horrific”.
Taylor accumulated £213,163.07 through third-party bank transfers and moved £147,828.47 between accounts and cash withdrawals during the period from September 2019 to September 2025, according to the Courier.
She encountered the 14-year-old boy while on holiday at Seton Sands holiday park last year and maintained contact with him via Facebook. The court heard that the mother requested the boy to sell the drug on her behalf, and he agreed because she permitted him to live at her place.
In return, she provided him with food and transferred small sums of money into his bank account for him to purchase food for himself and her children, without offering any additional payment for the drug distribution, reports the Daily Record.
Following an investigation, Prosecutor Hilland revealed that Taylor was implicated in the commercial drug trade as the funds in her three Bank of Scotland accounts could not have been accrued through legitimate means. The court heard that between June 8 and August 29, 2025, withdrawals amounting to £1,290 were made to accounts held by the boy.
Taylor received text messages and social media requests from individuals looking to purchase cocaine, subsequently sending the teenager to carry out the transactions. Either the mother or one of her associates would occasionally handle the delivery.
Mr Hilland further stated: “He did not receive any profit from the sale of the cocaine, as all sums were transferred to the accused.”
After police raided her Ballingry residence on August 21 last year, Taylor was arrested. They uncovered a total of 33 “recognised street deals” of cocaine, including 28 bags in an envelope bearing Taylor’s name, valued at £1,320 in total.
Additionally, they seized £380 in cash, scales, and Snapchat messages suggesting cocaine distribution. The court also learned that the young girl had ingested cocaine at a Fife address on August 5 and 6 the previous year.
She was swiftly taken to A&E at Victoria Hospital exhibiting symptoms such as drowsiness and vomiting, where Taylor informed a doctor she’d left her property earlier in the night for 30 minutes, to visit a shop.
She alleged that the girl had been left in the care of a friend, but upon her return, she found the child unwell and the friend intoxicated, having confessed to consuming multiple street valium.
The young girl informed a doctor that she had discovered a tablet on the floor and ingested it. Medical staff noted that she appeared pale and lethargic with dilated pupils, although she was responsive.
The child had experienced vomiting and “profuse diarrhoea” at the hospital, leading to her admission to the children’s ward overnight for further observation. She returned to normal health without requiring any treatment.
A subsequent urine test revealed an unspecified amount of cocaine and benzoylecgonine, the primary metabolite of the drug, in her system. The court also learned that the sample contained unspecified amounts of the painkiller Tramadol and the antidepressant venlafaxine. The fiscal stated: “The presence of any drug in the urine is indicative of ingestion of that drug.”
Prosecutors accepted Taylor’s not guilty plea to a human trafficking charge involving a teenage boy. However, despite her lawyer’s pleas for a community sentence and for her to be allowed to stay with her children, she was sentenced to three years in prison.
Sheriff MacRitchie addressed Taylor, stating: “Be under no illusions, this overall sentence is at the very lowest end of what could conceivably be a fair and proportionate disposal.
“You have heard the level it could be if one took a slightly different view of sentencing guidelines as a cross check.”
The sheriff informed her that her lack of previous convictions is “very significant” and the sentence was adjusted to reflect her circumstances, including “the effect on children,” the domestic abuse she reported, her relative youth at the time of the offence, adverse childhood experiences, and her guilty plea.
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