Former England fast bowler Chris Lewis was yesterday found guilty of smuggling cocaine into Britain in his cricket bag.
A jury at Croydon Crown Court near London convicted Lewis of bringing more than £140,000 (US$215,000) worth of the drug into the UK from St Lucia, packed in cans of fruit and vegetable juice.
The jury continued to deliberate on his co-accused Chad Kirnon.
Lewis, 41, played 32 Tests and 53 one-day internationals in the 1990s.
He had claimed in his defense that he did not even know cocaine could be converted into the liquid form in which it was discovered in his luggage when he arrived at London’s Gatwick Airport in December last year.
Lewis had told the court he suspected his co-defendant was involved in drugs when he was found to be carrying £7,000 in cash on arrival on the Caribbean island.
But the prosecution said Lewis had orchestrated the scheme with Kirnon.
Guyana-born Lewis took 93 wickets during his England Test career and 66 wickets in one-day internationals, at averages of 37.5 and 29.4 respectively.
He was tipped to become the new Ian Botham early in his career, but was widely regarded as having failed to realize his full potential.
Lewis retired from county cricket in 2000 because of a persistent hip injury after spells with Leicestershire, Surrey and Nottinghamshire.
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