A teenage drugs mule, just out of school, will today spend her first full day in prison for importing cocaine.

Amber Davis of Flanders, N.J., dropped her head in shame as Senior Magistrate Will Francis sent her to prison yesterday for three and a half years for importing $59,000 worth of cocaine.

Davis denied a charge of possessing cocaine with an intent to supply. The maximum penalty for importation is five years or $10,000 in fines or both.

Her parents, who arrived in Bermuda this week, sat stoically in the gallery as her lawyer Mark Pettingill called her a "dupe and a patsy'' of a conspiracy.

A co-accused, Keith Alexander Faulkner, an American, opted for a Supreme Court trial.

Davis only spoke to plead guilty and to say that she was sorry for the embarrassment she had caused her parents.

She was led away by Narcotics officers in tears, accompanied by her parents.

Mr. Francis found she had "done quite a bit'' in assisting Police in the case but said her reduced sentence should not affect potential sentences for anyone who may try it in the future.

Glancing first at Davis' parents, Mr. Francis said: "I hope the message does get out that as much as we regret the recourse we have to take with this kind of thing, particularly with people your age...'' In mitigation, Mr. Pettingill said Davis was a naive woman who had never been in trouble before.

"She has been duped and used as a patsy,'' he said. "She has a supportive family who are here in the court.'' Crown counsel Leighton Rochester told the court Narcotics officers, acting on "information received'', went to the Surf Side Beach Club in Warwick on Saturday with a search warrant.

Davis allowed a search of her room and two small packages containing a white-powder substance was found in a duffel bag.

When she was asked what the contents were, she said: "drugs.'' Numerous suspicious items and identification in her possession were seized.

Her Continental Airlines ticket confirmed she had arrived in Bermuda two days before on January 6.

On Monday, the Government Analyst found the powder to be 222.8 grams of 68 percent pure cocaine with a street value of $59,181.

Faulkner was remanded into custody for two weeks while Police prepare the necessary paperwork for a preliminary inquiry in the lower court.

He opted for a Supreme Court trial. Because he faces indictable charges, Faulkner did not have to plead to charges he imported cocaine with intent to supply.

There is a further charge of entering Bermuda on January 7 using a forged birth certificate and driver's licence, under the alias Steven Alexander.

American Steven Alexander Faulkner covers his face as he is led away from Court DRUGS DGS