A Deepdale man accused of taking part in a $3.5 million drug plot admitted the offence as his trial was set to begin.Kenneth J Zuill, 39, pleaded guilty in Supreme Court to conspiring with Mary Johnson, Michelle Gibbons and others not before the court to import cannabis to the Island.The Pembroke resident had previously pleaded not guilty to the charges and a trial was to begin yesterday, but he reversed his plea before jury selection could begin.Acting Justice Juan Wolffe remanded Zuill into custody until the September arraignments session, when a date may be set for his sentencing.Apart from pleading guilty, Zuill remained silent throughout proceedings.The offence was said to have taken place between an unknown date and October 21, 2010, the same date that Gibbons and Johnson were arrested.Johnson, of Edgeway Lane, Pembroke, was caught by security at Newark Liberty International Airport with 49 kilos of packaged cannabis concealed in four false-bottomed bags. The drugs had an estimated street value of $2.4 million.Gibbons, of King Street, Pembroke, was arrested trying to board the flight with 21 kilos of cannabis hidden in three bags. According to the Crown, the drugs found in Gibbons’ bags would carry a street value of as much as $1.1 million in Bermuda.Gibbons pleaded guilty to conspiring to import cannabis. Her lawyer told the court that the mother-of-two only agreed to take part in the plot because of her financial woes.Johnson denied the charges.During her Supreme Court trial, she admitted that she had agreed to smuggle something into the Island, but claimed she did not know the bags contained drugs.Johnson alleged that she was given $2,570 in cash by a Bermudian drug dealer to bring the contents of the bags into Bermuda. She identified the man as “KJ” and said that he lived in the Deepdale area of Pembroke.A jury found her guilty of the offences and she was sentenced to ten years in prison.Gibbons was jailed for eight years for her involvement in the crime.