A South African man accused of trying to smuggle more than $100,000 of cocaine into Australia through the post has been refused bail after a hearing that spanned more than two months.
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Lenin Manyathela, 27, has pleaded not guilty to a charge of attempting to import a marketable quantity of cocaine into the country.
The ACT Supreme Court heard on Friday that Manyathela was part of an international drug-smuggling operation and could flee the country using fake ID if granted bail.
Manyathela and his co-accused, 36-year-old Osaro Peterson Ojielumhen, were arrested in March after allegedly picking up an express post package containing 325g of cocaine.
But the parcel, which was sent from Thailand to an address in Higgins, had already been intercepted by Customs and the drugs swapped for a harmless white powder.
Manyathela's application for bail had been before the courts since at least August and was described as ''incredibly long in the tooth''.
The Commonwealth prosecution argued that the South African national, who had come to Australia to study, had no links to the territory and nothing to prevent him from fleeing if granted bail.
Manyathela had been excluded from the University of Canberra for a year after poor academic results and was in Australia on a criminal justice visa that allowed him to remain in the country while his court matters were under way.
The court heard he had also been linked to fake passports and identity documents and police feared he would use false documents to flee to South Africa.
But Manyathela surprised everyone - including his own lawyers - with the news that his English-based mother would be flying into the country in the next few days and planned to live and work in Sydney.
His barrister argued that Manyathela's mother could provide a cash surety for his bail, offer him a home and supervise him while he was on bail.
Justice Hilary Penfold said the sudden news could change Manyathela's bail application but said it would be better for the man to make a new application once his mother had settled and was able to come to Canberra to give evidence.
''He can only use his mother once,'' she said. She formally refused bail on the grounds that Manyathela was a flight risk.