A man accused of trying to receive a lucrative cocaine delivery for a friend called "Pooh" will temporarily walk free as he waits to stand trial over his alleged role in a plot to import the drug.
Justice Michael Elkaim granted Gordon man Kyle Ian Christopher Wilson, 24, day bail in the ACT Supreme Court on Wednesday afternoon.
The judge resolved to briefly release Wilson from the Alexander Maconochie Centre on Thursday so the unemployed man could attend his grandmother's funeral.
Wilson has been behind bars on remand since last November, when Australian Border Force officers intercepted a package that had arrived in Sydney from Nigeria.
The consignment was declared as "weavon & eyelashes" but X-rays found it to contain about 1kg of cocaine, which was said to be worth between $330,000 and $500,000.
Court documents show police, who were alerted to the discovery, proceeded to replace the drugs with an inert substance and install a surveillance device within the package.
A police officer purporting to be a DHL employee then delivered it to Wilson's home in Gordon, where it had been addressed to a "Samantha Cherry".
Police subsequently entered the home with a search warrant and arrested the unemployed 24-year-old, who allegedly made "comprehensive admissions" to investigators.
These were said to include that he had expected to receive a cash payment in exchange for receiving the delivery on behalf of a friend he referred to as "Monty".
"Monty is saved in his phone as 'Pooh Shiesty that's my dawg'," court documents say.
Wilson, who has pleaded not guilty to a charge of attempting to possess a marketable quantity of a border-controlled drug, was committed for trial earlier this year.
Wearing an oversized blue jacket, he appeared briefly in court on Wednesday afternoon.
Defence lawyer Stephanie Beckedahl asked for him to be granted day bail to attend the funeral, and Commonwealth prosecutor Cecilia Pascoe did not oppose the application.
Justice Elkaim accordingly granted Wilson temporary release.
"I think the application is appropriate," the judge said.
Wilson is due back in court at a later date.
ACT Policing's drugs and organised crime team is still investigating how the cocaine came to be at the Australian border.
In June, investigators released a 34-second audio clip from a phone call in a bid to identify the caller, who was recorded saying he was "just calling up to enquire about my delivery".
Detectives said at the time that they believed the owner of the mysterious voice was associated with the plot to import the drugs from Nigeria.
Anyone able identify the voice was urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000, or via the Crime Stoppers ACT website, quoting reference 6955736. Information can be provided anonymously.
