Isabella Fazzari and another man appear in court charged over cocaine puzzle bust
An 18-year-old Adelaide woman charged over cocaine hidden inside a puzzle box from the UK has appeared in court for the first time.
Police & Courts
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A young woman charged over the importation of 850g of cocaine secreted inside a puzzle box has appeared in court in person for the first time, while a man also charged over the bust has asked for release on bail.
Isabella Fazzari, 18, of Prospect appeared in the Adelaide Magistrates Court in person on Thursday while another man, whose identity is suppressed, a appeared via video link.
During a bail hearing for the man, Rachel Wang, prosecuting, told the court the man was arrested during a traffic stop after picking up the parcel from an address in Salisbury.
“The parcel was located in the car,” she said.
The court has previously heard allegations Ms Fazzari was linked to the bust via her boyfriend, who had provided information to her while he was in custody at the Adelaide Remand Centre.
It was alleged Ms Fazzari’s role in the operation was to organise tracking numbers and advise recipients that a parcel was coming on a particular date and to “make sure that there was someone there to receive it”.
On Thursday, Ms Wang told the court the parcel had been addressed to the charged man’s “stepsister or half sister”.
“The (man’s) role was picking up the parcel, which had been replaced with an inert substance, from an address,” she said.
“Another third party signed for it, (the charged man) attended with his sister later, left in a car. SAPOL conducted a traffic stop and the parcel was located in the car.”
The court has previously heard the package was sent from the United Kingdom on January 10. On its arrival in Sydney, authorities replaced the cocaine with an inert substance and sent the package on to its intended address where it arrived on January 18.
Ms Wang told the court, the man had “declined to answer questions” after his arrest.
She said prosecutors were not opposed to the ordering of a home detention report but were awaiting details of the man’s prior offending before taking a position on his release on bail.
Magistrate Simon Smart ordered a home detention report and will make a decision about the man’s bail next week.
Ms Fazzari was released on bail earlier this month. On that occasion she was beamed into court via video link from the City Watch House, where she was held after her arrest.
Both accused are expected to enter pleas to a charge of importing a marketable quantity of a border-controlled drug when they return to court again in May.
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