A South African drug mule was yesterday sentenced to 12 years in prison for importing close to half a kilo of heroin, worth over $2.5 million.

Brian Carpenter, 52, of Johannesburg, South Africa, pleaded guilty in Supreme Court to importing heroin into Bermuda on May 2.

Crown counsel Cindy Clarke told the court Carpenter arrived on a commercial flight from London.

At 6.25 p.m. he was escorted to the inspection counter of Bermuda Customs where his luggage was searched by a narcotics officer who became suspicious after he said he did not know what his sister?s last name was, or how he was going to get in touch with her, even though he was supposed to meet her on the Island.

Ms Clarke said officers noticed beads of sweat on the defendant?s brow. In the search room, when he was asked if he had ingested any drugs, he replied ?just vodka?.

He consented to be taken to the hospital to be X-rayed, where doctors found foreign objects in his abdomen.

Det. Con. Warren Bundy arrested him under suspicion of importing a controlled drug.

Det. Con. Bundy asked Carpenter what he had swallowed and he replied ?Ginseng pills?.

However, starting at 7.20 a.m. on May 5, Carpenter excreted a total of 50 silver pellets which were found to contain 492.12 grams of the controlled drug diamorphine.

The drug was 80 percent pure.

That amount could have been split into 130,698 decks at an estimated street value of $2,613,960, the court heard.

Under questioning by Carpenter?s lawyer, Elizabeth Christopher, Det. Con. Bundy said that during Police interviews, Carpenter said he was living homeless on a beach in South Africa when he was approached to carry the drugs. He said he did not want to divulge too much information on the men who approached him on the beach, because he ?would get killed when (he) got back?.

He said he was not sure what kind of drug he was carrying and that he was an alcoholic who was probably drunk when he arrived in Bermuda.

Ms Clarke asked for a sentence of between 14 to 17 years.

Before he was sentenced, Carpenter said he did not ?belong to any drug organisation? but was ?unemployed?.

?They approached me and I did it,? he said.

Chief Justice Richard Ground said, while the range was around 16 years, he found mitigating circumstances in Carpenter?s case.

?It is consistent that this man has a weak intellect,? he said. ?He is hampered by a hearing problem and other social and personal problems.

?I impose a sentence of 12 years immediate imprisonment.?

Carpenter has been remanded since May, and time already served will be taken into consideration in his sentence.

?I have some sympathy for his (plight),? Mr. Justice Ground said. ?I do not know why Bermuda should pick up South Africa?s social problems, but we need to deter others from importing drugs to Bermuda.

?If this man was of further character, I would have no problem with imposing a sentence of 16 to 18 years on him.?