received an electric bill for more than $700, a Supreme Court jury heard yesterday.

And this bill was totally inconsistent with the regular billing pattern established over the previous ten months.

Williams, 43, of Harbour Road, Paget, is charged with knowingly allowing Richard Graham Thomas, 40, to use his basement to cultivate 75 cannabis plants in an operation that used transformers, powerful lights, an extractor fan and a water hose among other items.

Thomas, of White Sands Road, Paget, pleaded guilty to growing the cannabis plants in Williams' home on Monday. His sentence date has not been determined yet.

Meantime, the Crown allege that Williams knew about the illegal activity. They suggested that the three lights that Thomas set up in his basement -- they used 36 kilowatts of current per day -- were the reason for his unusually high power bill on January 13, 1994.

Derek Boys, a Bermuda Electric Light Company representative, said that Williams' power bills between April 1993 and December 1993 ranged between $174 and $242.

But on January 13, 1994 he received a bill for $734.92 and the Crown allege that the growth in Williams' power bill, which was double the next highest bill he received during that period, was directly related to the equipment Thomas had set up in his basement.

Court hears of high electric bill Continued from page 1 Among the array of devices were three lights, two of which had 2000 watt bulbs and one that had a bulb of 1000 watts.

However the defence claim that this unusually high power bill only occurred once and could be explained because Belco was unable to read Williams' metre because of his dog being either in the house or roaming the property.

Consequently, they had given him estimated billings for October, November and December 1993. On January 19, 1994 they were able to go onto the premises and get an actual reading which meant that his December bill was written off and he was billed in January for the month of December and the following January.

"The four previous months (October-January) were all based on estimates so we cannot say for sure when the (unusual) increase happened,'' Boys said.

And he agreed with defence lawyer Mr. Alan Dunch that it was impossible to say for sure which appliances -- the three powerful lights involved in the drug cultivation or his three air conditioning units -- are to blame for the unusual increase in January 1994.

Tony Knap, director of the Bermuda Biological Station, said he knew Williams well because they were sailing partners and raced together on weekends during the season.

He said that he would often go down to the basement to fetch the boat sails and return them after they were used and at no time did he see or smell anything unusual there.

Knap said he was last inside the basement on November 13, 1993 which was his last day of sailing for that season.

"I don't recall seeing, hearing or smelling anything out of the ordinary,'' he said. "If I had, I would have told Williams and I would have recalled it.'' Williams -- a former United Bermuda Party branch committee member for the Paget East constituency, a member of the Royal Hamilton Amateur Dinghy Club, and a former chairman for the consumer services division of the Chamber of Commerce -- took the stand for the first time yesterday.

"I'm humiliated and embarrassed,'' he told the court. "I'm petrified and generally very nervous.'' Williams, who owns Williams Trading in Pembroke with his mother and sister said he has known Thomas since the early 1970s and he has drifted in and out of his life ever since.

"I now have no relationship with him,'' he said. "I would not be here if it was not for him.'' Williams said Thomas would do odd jobs for him such as painting, repairs to windows and masonry work.

Around October 1993 he said Thomas asked him if he had some space in his basement that he could use to store tools and other related equipment.

Williams said Thomas told him that he would need general access to the basement at night and on the weekends to get his tools.

"I offered him the basement and we discussed rent. I declined to accept any rent because I knew he didn't have any money. I was just helping him out.'' Williams said Thomas gave him the impression that it was a temporary situation that would last about three months at the most.

"I never thought it was going to be used to cultivate cannabis.'' The trial continues this morning before Puisne Judge the Hon. Mrs. Justice Wade. Mr. Khamisi Tokunbo appears for the Crown while Mr. Alan Dunch appears for the defendant.