Australian tried on drug charge

Australian tried on drug charge

DENPASAR, Bali: An Australian woman accused of smuggling more than four kilograms of marijuana into Bali went on trial on Thursday on a charge that carries the maximum death penalty.

As her family watched from the gallery, Schapelle Leigh Corby, 27, heard a judge read the charge of importing illegal drugs, an offense that under tough anti-drug laws carries a 20-year prison term or death by firing squad.

Corby has denied the allegations and her lawyers have said they are investigating the possibility that the marijuana was planted in her luggage.

Officials said customs officers found the marijuana in Corby's bodyboard bag during a routine X-ray search when she arrived on a flight from Brisbane via Sydney.

"On Friday 8th of October 2004 at the international airport in Bali, you broke Indonesian law by importing grade 1 narcotics, in this case marijuana. The weight was 4.2 kilograms," Judge Linton Sirait said in court.

The case was adjourned until next week. --Reuters