A Smith's man who claimed he was pressured to bring 271 grams of cocaine into Bermuda was sentenced to four years behind bars.

Eamonn Shane Gibbons, 29, of Douglas Drive pleaded guilty to importing $4,625 worth of the drug into the Island on April 26.

He denied a further offence of possessing the drug with intent to supply. The prosecution offered no evidence on the charge.

Magistrates' Court heard that Gibbons arrived in Bermuda on a commercial flight from Atlanta and proceeded to the Customs Hall around 2.20 p.m.

He was selected to go to a secondary inspection area where his luggage was examined.

Customs officers found a knapsack filled with electronic items and some cocaine, said Crown counsel Nicole Smith.

Gibbons was searched further but nothing else was found on him. She said Gibbons appeared nervous and was fidgeting. He was then invited into an inspection area for a personal search.

Gibbons was asked if he had any drugs on his body or in his body, to which he replied "no".

He was told to remove his shirt, at which point Gibbons said: "I'm not going down for this I want to change what I told you before."

Officers from the drug unit then entered the room and gave Gibbons the chance to explain his side of the story.

He said he was approached by a Barbadian man while away. The person threatened him, beat him up and burned him with a cigarette.

He said he didn't want to carry the drugs and was nervous all day. He admitted he knew what he did was wrong.

"I just felt that I had to do it because I needed to protect my life and my family's life," he said.

Gibbons told officers he had a package in his genital area containing 65 pellets of cocaine and had swallowed another three.

He was taken to King Edward VII Memorial Hospital where an X-ray showed three cylindrical pellets in his stomach.

Gibbons, represented by lawyer Craig Attridge, apologised for his actions.

"I want to say I am sorry I [hurt] my loved ones. This is totally out of character. I am just sorry."

Acting Senior Magistrate Khamisi Tokunbo said he took into account the defendant's early guilty plea and remorse.

"The court has been clear about the consequences of a conviction of this kind of offence.

"Taking this matter into consideration I consider the appropriate sentence to be one of four years imprisonment."