Kiwi pensioner Raemon Parkinson found guilty smuggling heroin into Australia will spend time behind bars

There will be no slap on the wrist for an elderly smack smuggler busted at Melbourne Airport with $2m in heroin hidden in his luggage.

Raemon Parkinson, 72, was arrested a Tullamarine after trying to smuggle 2.5kg of heroin into the country.

A “very proud Maori” grandfather has been busted trying to sneak $2m worth of heroin into Australia after a holiday in southeast Asia.

Raemon Parkinson, 72, fronted the County Court on July 1 for a plea hearing, after a jury found him guilty of importing a commercial quantity of heroin into Australia,

Parkinson — who appeared via video link from Fulham Correctional Centre wearing prison greens — claimed he had been “set up” to smuggle the drugs.

On Tuesday, barrister Brett Stevens said the prosecution case argued “the arrangement was a sham from the outset”.

The pensioner was caught with 2.5kg of heroin — with an estimated street value of $2m — concealed in his luggage at Melbourne Airport on November 11 in 2023.

The court heard Parkinson picked up the suitcase in Laos before boarding the international flight.

The court heard he picked up a suitcase in Laos before boarding the international flight.

In his submissions, Parkinson’s barrister Richard Backwell described his client as a “very proud Maori man”.

“(During) his time in prison, he’s been teaching Maori culture and language to other Pacific Islanders,” he said.

“He said there are a number of young men of Pacific Island descent who have no idea of their culture and language.

“He is looked upon as an elder.”

The court heard Parkinson had previously worked in abattoirs, and continued to work part time as a musician in the Bay of Islands in New Zealand.

The dugs found had a street value of $2m.

“He has been involved actively with the Maori community in New Zealand, involved with various land claims,” Mr Backwell said.

“He never imagined he would spend his 70s in jail in Australia.”

The court heard Parkinson will receive a minimum non-parole period due to the “seriousness of the charge and the offending”.

Judge Krista Breckweg said she believed Parkinson’s prospects for rehabilitation were “better than reasonable”.

She adjourned the court to July 28, when she will hand down her sentence.

So far, Parkinson has spent 598 days on remand.