A man who claimed that he was only holding a crack pipe and cocaine was fined $1,500 yesterday in Magistrates? Court.

Stanford Ernest Eugene Thomas, 57, of Whaling Bay Road, Sandys, pleaded guilty to being in possession of cocaine and a glass bottle, which had been modified into a pipe.

?It wasn?t mine,? he said, despite his plea. ?A girl told me to hold it while she went in to get a drink. ?The next thing I knew, the Police were on me.?

Crown counsel Cindy Clarke said that Police had been on mobile patrol when they saw Thomas, who was standing on the corner of Princess Street and Court Street, put a bottle down near his feet.

He was then searched under the Misuse of Drugs Act and was found to also be in possession of a white powder, which when analysed was found to contain 0.01 grams of cocaine. The bottle also showed traces of crack cocaine.

Acting Senior Magistrate Carlisle Greaves fined him $1,000 for the drugs and $500 for the bottle.