Taylor Two Customs officers have testified that a businessman charged with smuggling cannabis closely examined a crate concealing the drugs to see if it had been tampered with.

Terry Eugene Darrell denies importing nearly $200,000 of cannabis hidden in a false floor of a crate with intent to supply.

The Supreme Court heard Darrell, 43, came to Hamilton docks on August 13 1998 to collect contents from a crate sent from Jacksonville, Florida.

Puisne Judge Charles-Etta Simmons heard Customs officers removed most of the drugs from the false floor and replaced them with dummy packages. A new false floor was put back.

The crate bottom and contents were later driven to Darrell's carpentry shop, Wood Dimensions in Dockyard, by his friend Walter Green.

Mr. Green, from Warwick, had no knowledge that the crate contained drugs. He agreed to deliver the goods after his van was stopped by Police officers who informed him of the contents.

Customs officer Andrea Trott told Crown counsel Sandra Bacchus that when Darrell was looking inside the crate at the docks he appeared to be "looking past the items to look at the floor of the crate.

"He looked around, inside and outside of the crate to see if it had been tampered with.'' This statement was later backed up by her colleague Hillary Rodill.

Mr. Pettingill asked: "Would you agree that in your statement to the jury about Mr. Darrell inspecting the floor of the crate you were over-stating it?'' He also grilled Ms Trott for giving evidence in court which allegedly contradicted her written statement.

She agreed that Darrell said to her that he "might as well take the boxes (from the crate) and go across the road to get a car'' but made no mention of taking the wooden floor.

Her statement said: "Mr. Darrell said he was going to leave and get a truck.'' She agreed a car would be too small to contain the crate bottom.

Mr. Pettingill continued: "According to your statement, he goes from car to truck for no reason?'' She agreed.

Ms Trott said neither she nor her colleague had asked Darrell to remove the crate from the dock.

She said that at no time had Darrell, of Coral Acres Drive, Southampton, indicated he was concerned the goods were not his or that someone was using his name to send goods.

Mr. Green said Darrell called him around 2 p.m. on August 13 to ask if he could use his van to move the freight from the docks to his workshop.

He said Darrell told him "someone was sending him something he wasn't expecting, but it shouldn't be a problem because he had cleared it with customs''.

The crate was too large so they decided to unload its contents on the dock and pack it into the van. Mr. Green said he said they could leave the wood at the dock, but alleged Darrell said he wanted to take it to his workshop because it was good wood which he could use.

Mr. Green said he offered to allow Darrell to drive the goods to Dockyard and he would take his bike, but Darrell said his friend could take it to his work and deliver it later as there was no hurry.

Darrell showed Customs a fax from a freight company, Ace Forwarding, in Florida stating that the consignment would also contain used tools.

The State of Florida provided a statement that Ace Forwarding was administratively dissolved in 1979.

Customs officer Hillary Rodill was at Number Seven dock when Mr. Darrell come to collect his crate.

In testimony to the court yesterday he said Darrell was vociferous and agitated and had scrutinised the box inside and out and commented out how shrink wrap had been pulled from the inside of the box.

Mr. Pettingill raised the issue why Darrell had asked for a hammer which was given to him according to Mr. Rodill's testimony.

Mr. Pettingill asked him: "Did you stop to think that if he starts hammering there will be marijuana blowing all over the dock?'' Mr. Rodill replied: "What occurred was that he would see there was a false floor that we had put in and would know we had put dummy packages in.'' Mr. Rodill said every effort had been made to make the box look untampered but Mr. Pettingill pointed out the new bottom was much thicker than the old - a fact Darrell -- a carpenter -- would have spotted.

But Mr. Rodill said that he assumed the person who made the box with its false bottom was the same person who was opening the box.

And Mr. Rodill denied that by banging away at the box Darrell risked breaking open the false bottom.