Two men will have to wait till mid March to hear if a case against them for importing gambling machines to the Island will be thrown out.

Fermin Alfonso Reyes, 29, and George Kezas, 72, have been accused of importing the machines aboard the Niobe Corinthian in August last year. They both deny the charge.

Police raided the ship, which was moored at Marginal Wharf, St. David's, on August 11 and seized 100 machines from the vessel. They also arrested Reyes, who is captain of the ship. Two days later Police searched the Lily Park Lane home of Kezas, who is allegedly the managing director of the ship, and arrested him at his St. George's residence.

On Monday defence lawyers Elizabeth Christopher and Kevin Bean, who represent Reyes and Kezas respectively, made representations to Magistrate Khamisi Tokunbo that the trial should be thrown out.

They argued the machines were never intended to the leave the ship, be used in Bermuda or in its territorial waters.

The legal submissions continued yesterday with the lawyers arguing over finer points of the law. Among their many submissions they argued the ship was in transit and the machines were fixtures that were never intended to leave the vessel.

The submissions were not finished at the end of yesterday's court session and Mr. Tokunbo ordered them to make their submissions in writing.

The trial has been adjourned several times since it began in October, 2006. Mr. Tokunbo will decide if the trial will continue on March 15 at Magistrates' Court.