A customs officer found a series of packages hidden in an alleged drug smuggler’s suitcases, the Supreme Court heard.

Zadun Robinson, 22, has denied charges that he smuggled more than $400,000 of drugs into the island on August 28, 2018.

Prosecutors told the court that $446,000 of cannabis and $27,450 of delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol – the active component of cannabis – were found in Mr Robinson’s luggage after he arrived on the island on a flight from Toronto.

As the trial began on Friday, a customs officer said Mr Robinson and another man, Kanhai Fray, were sent to her for their luggage to be searched.

She said Mr Fray had told her that he had travelled to attend a funeral, while Mr Robinson said he was on vacation.

The witness added that she also examined Mr Robinson’s customs declaration card, which indicated that he sought to declare $2,550 of clothing or footwear, with the word “footwear” circled on the form.

She said: “He did have clothing and footwear, but to me the contents inside the bag seemed way under the value of $2,550.”

The witness said that she emptied the first suitcase and noticed that the hard plastic suitcase felt heavier than it should.

An x-ray of the suitcase revealed objects inside its plastic lining.

She peeled off a piece of hard plastic inside the suitcase and discovered a silver-coloured rectangular package.

Asked what was inside the package, Mr Robinson shrugged his shoulders and said he did not know, the court heard.

She took Mr Robinson to a separate search room where she opened the lining of a second bag and saw several more silver-wrapped packages.

The witness said Mr Robinson complained of an earache but did not make any comments about the packages.

Under cross-examination by Marc Daniels, counsel for Mr Robinson, the witness said she did not smell any cannabis when she opened the suitcases.

However, she denied that she needed to use a screwdriver to remove the hard plastic that concealed the packages.

The trial continues.

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