Dettifoss drug trial delayed over late evidence dispute

The main hearing in the Dettifoss drug case was delayed on Wednesday after a defence lawyer challenged the prosecution’s late submission of evidence, mbl.is reported. The judge rejected a request to postpone the trial, but proceedings began after the prosecution agreed to wait before submitting the disputed material.

The hearing was scheduled to start at 9.15am. Stefán Karl Kristjánsson, defence lawyer for defendant Sævar Örn Hilmarsson, argued that the prosecution had not been “playing the right game” by submitting the evidence late.

Arnfríður Gígja Arngrímsdóttir, the appointed prosecutor, said she had noticed the previous day that photographs of amphetamine base were missing from the case materials. She had requested the images and presented them to the defence lawyers that morning.

“There is reason to doubt what has been submitted here,” Stefán said. When told that his request would delay the hearing, he added: “I am not the bad guy in this. The prosecution is.”

After a 10-minute meeting, the parties agreed that the prosecution would wait before submitting the evidence. The hearing was then able to begin after considerable delays.

Four men are charged with importing a total of 14,100 millilitres of amphetamine base, with a strength of 47 to 48 per cent, in March and April for distribution and profit in Iceland.

According to the indictment, the substance was hidden in four Absolut vodka bottles inside a bag aboard the container ship Dettifoss, which travelled from Bremerhaven in Germany to Iceland, arriving early on Monday, April 13.

Kastriots Pepaj and Sævar Örn Hilmarsson are accused of helping organise the import. They have largely denied the charges and allegedly communicated about the plan through the Signal messaging app before meeting several times.

Two crew members are accused of receiving the drugs in Bremerhaven, hiding them aboard the ship and transporting them to Iceland. They have admitted guilt but not joint criminality, and have not agreed to the seizure of a phone.

Kastriot was arrested on April 22 and has been held in custody since then. Sævar and the two crew members were arrested when the Dettifoss arrived in Reykjavík on April 13.