Despite the claims by an Australian jockey caught on March 11 in Guangzhou Airport with more than three kilograms of crystal methamphetamine that he was just set up, Chinese prosecutors have sought the death penalty.

The illegal drugs were found in envelopes stuffed in women's handbags in the luggage of 43-year-old Anthony Roger Bannister of Adelaide, reports 9News. He was then about to board a plane bound for Sydney.

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Bannister told the Guangzhou court that he did not know that the drugs were in his luggage. He identified the three men who gave him the women's bags as "Justin," "KC" and "John Law."

He said the three men told him to go to Guangzhou several times to sign documents in connection with his divorce of his Filipino wife whom he met when he lived in Japan. Bannister said the three told him he could get a good amount as divorce settlement from his wife.

He traveled to Guangzhou five times in four months, but he usually stayed only for a few days.

But prosecutors did not believe Bannister's version of what happened. They described his account as conflicting and lacking in logic. They said the Australian jockey went into drug smuggling because of his financial situation, which was worsened by his becoming unemployed.

James Bannister, the elder brother of the accused, said the jockey was a naïve and trusting person that he could easily be victimized by scammers. He disclosed that Anthony had learning difficulties as a youth and dropped out of school after year 9 to apprentice as a jockey in Mount Gambler.

Three Chinese judges will decide on the fate of Bannister.

Guangzhou has a reputation as the shipment point for methamphetamine because of its being a hub for global transport and a wide variety of chemical used for making ice.

The case raises the possibility that Australia's diplomatic row with Indonesia over the Bali 9 who are slated to be executed for drug smuggling would again be repeated with China. There are at least nine other Australians charged over the past 12 months with serious drug offences punishable by death penalty.

TagsDrugs, methamphetamine, jockey, Australia