Among other things, there was also an image of people in his kitchen snorting white powder off a number plate labelled "RACKTBL". Rack is a common slang term for cocaine.

The dealer, Josh Anthony Wood, spent a week behind bars on remand after he was arrested in May.

The 29-year-old Gilmore man avoided further time in custody on Wednesday, when he was sentenced in the ACT Magistrates Court to a 16-month intensive correction order.

Agreed facts show police conducting surveillance on Jamal Nchouki, who also faces a drug trafficking charge, observed that man handing Wood a green bucket at the Melba shops on April 30.

Officers subsequently obtained warrants to search Wood and his home, executing these on May 14.

In kitchen cupboards, they found about 53 grams of cocaine, a homemade cocaine press, a set of digital scales and other drug paraphernalia.

They also found a total of about $9985 in cash on Wood and throughout his home.

Wood was arrested, and subsequent investigations revealed he had sent messages related to his drug dealing, using the handle "yallgronks", through the Wickr encrypted app.

After initially denying a cocaine trafficking charge, Wood pleaded guilty in August.

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In court on Wednesday, his lawyer, Jacob Robertson, said Wood admitted buying large amounts of cocaine for both personal use and to sell to a group of up to 15 friends.

He told the court Wood was not motivated by greed or financial gain, though the 29-year-old admitted making a small profit by dealing cocaine to people "within his circle".

Mr Robertson said a community-based sentence would be appropriate.

Prosecutor Elizabeth Wren described Wood as being "akin to a street-level dealer".

She told the court the evidence showed Wood had "relatively high-level connections", however, arguing the offender had tried to minimise his conduct.

Ms Wren said it did not matter whether Wood had been selling drugs to his friends or to strangers, noting illicit substances caused harm no matter where they came from.

She asked magistrate Glenn Theakston to impose a sentence that would make this clear to both Wood and the wider community.

Mr Theakston ultimately found an intensive correction order was an appropriate outcome.

He noted Wood's operation was not "a commercial enterprise", and that the man did not have any relevant criminal history.

The magistrate said a number of character references tendered on behalf of the 29-year-old "pretty much express shock" at the offending.

But Mr Theakston said good people could do bad things.

He warned Wood that any breaches of the court order, or similar future offending, would "almost certainly" see him locked up.

Mr Theakston also observed that Wood had already endured some "public shaming", having lost a carpentry job after his first court appearance was covered by The Canberra Times.

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