On Tuesday, jurors returned a mixed verdict against Trevor Stephen, finding that he is guilty of possession of 462 pounds of cocaine with intent to distribute, according to U.S. District Court records.
Stephen, 35, of St. Lucia, was also charged with a related conspiracy count, but jurors acquitted him of that crime.
The possession charge carries a possible punishment of no less than 10 years in prison, and a maximum of life behind bars, according to information from the U.S. Justice Department.
The unusual trial started on June 12 with Stephen and co-defendant Russell Robinson, who was representing himself pro se and said during opening statements that he’d been forced into the crime at gunpoint by a third party.
Robinson successfully moved for a mistrial after Stephen’s public defenders launched a last-minute duress defense, accusing Robinson of threatening to shoot Stephen if he didn’t help move the seven duffel bags of cocaine from a boat at Vessup Beach.
Robinson, who is currently jailed, will go to trial at a later date. But Robinson told U.S. District Court Chief Judge Robert Molloy that he intends to appeal to the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in an effort to have the indictment dismissed on the grounds that another trial would violate his double jeopardy rights.
After Robinson was excused, Stephen remained on trial. Stephen took the witness stand in his own defense, tearfully telling jurors that he was afraid that he might be shot, and his family might be harmed if he didn’t cooperate.
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