Sudoku halts Australian drugs trial

An Australian drugs trial has been scrapped after five jurors admitted they had been playing Sudoku in the Sydney courtroom to stave off boredom.

One juror said: "Some of the evidence is rather drawn out, and I find it difficult to maintain my attention the whole time."

And lawyer Robyn Hakelis said how she presumed the jurors were taking notes rather than whiling away the hours playing puzzles.

"We actually all thought they were quite a diligent jury," she told ABC radio.  The course of justice was disrupted and the jurors were rumbled when it was noticed that they were writing notes vertically rather than horizontally.