A 35-year-old man was sentenced to a year in prison yesterday for allowing drug use in his apartment.

Kennith Clifton Bulford had been charged with possession of drug equipment four pieces of PVC pipe and allowing a property to be used for drug activity.

Bulford was previously a suspect in the 2003 shooting death of Shaundae Jones, but the case against Bulford was thrown out after a Crown witness withdrew his evidence.

The charges came following a search of a Beacon Hill apartment, which Bulford shared with his cousin.

During the October 2008 search, officers discovered an ashtray containing two hand-rolled marijuana cigarette butts, a grinder, a zip-lock bag and a pair of scissors with traces of illegal drugs in the apartment's living room and kitchen.

A zip-lock bag containing 9.56 grams of crack cocaine was also found by officers in the building's cesspit.

Officers involved in the search testified that the door to Bulford's bedroom was locked and had to be kicked down for the Police to gain access.

Inside, Police found five pieces of PVC pipe, four of which were found to have trace amounts of cocaine.

Police also found a locked safe containing two gold bars, diamonds, jewellery and large amounts of US and Bermuda cash, all of which were seized by Police.

In August 2009, Bulford and his lawyer, Saul Froomkin, issued a writ against the Attorney General for the return of the seized items, valued at $54,450.

An affidavit included with the writ, signed by Bulford, was used as evidence against him by the prosecution who claimed it proved that only Bulford had access to the bedroom.

Bulford, who is being held in custody in connection to an unrelated matter, appeared in Magistrates' Court yesterday in handcuffs while an armed Police officer stood outside the courthouse.

Crown Counsel Cindy Clarke said during her closing statement: "The five pipes were found and seized from under the bed in the room which Bulford said in an affidavit was his room.

"That room was locked, and had to be forcibly breached by officers. Nobody else in the premises had a key to his room."

She said that the only question for the court is if the piping, which a Police expert said could have been used to conceal illegal drugs or money, fits the description of drug equipment.

"While the pipes have a lawful use, their use was unlawful in this case," said Ms Clarke. "Drug equipment is not narrowly defined to items used in the actual taking of the drugs, but the packing and preserving as well."

Regarding the charge of allowing the apartment be used for the misuse of drugs, she said that Bulford knew about the drugs.

"The defendant himself indicated he was an occupier of the room," she said. "There was only one bathroom in the house. There was only one kitchen in the house."

Mr Froomkin, however, said that there was no proof that the apartment had been used for drugs prior to the day of the raid, and pointed out that Bulford was not at the apartment at the time of the raid.

"There is no evidence how long he was absent from the premises. You can only turn a blind eye to something you can see. We don't know if it was a regular thing. We know it happened one day in the absence of the defendant."

He also denied that the PVC pipes could be classified as drug equipment, saying that even if they were used to hide drugs, they would not fit the description.

"It has to be directly involved in the misuse, and misuse is confined to the taking," he argued.

"The evidence here is that the pipes were intended for the concealment of the drugs, not their use.

"That is what the expert evidence was. That would not be an unreasonable inference, but that is not the evidence on which he is charged.

"There is no evidence that the pipes could be used to misuse the drugs. Absolutely no evidence."

Acting Magistrate Graveney Bannister found Bulford not guilty of possessing drug equipment, saying: "No doubt the PVC pipes had traces of cocaine, but to be fit and intended for misuse of drugs? It's questionable as equipment."

However, Mr. Bannister found Bulford guilty of allowing the apartment to be used for drugs, noting the number of items holding trace amounts of drugs.

"There was cocaine on the pipes, there was cocaine on the bag, there was cannabis on the scissors," he said.

While Mr. Froomkin called for his client to be released with a fine at worst, Mr. Bannister stressed the seriousness of the crime, sentencing Bulford to a year imprisonment.