POPULAR Jamaican deejay Busy Signal, pleaded not guilty to one count of failure to appear in court yesterday.

Busy Signal, whose real name is Glendale Gordon, is accused of fleeing the US to avoid a drug trial a decade ago.

Gordon could face up to five years in prison if convicted on that count. He was ordered detained pending his trial.

He was charged in February 2002 with two counts related to cocaine trafficking. He fled before his trial was to begin in Minnesota and has been a fugitive for the past decade, Assistant US Attorney Andrew Dunn, said in court.

Busy Signal was detained by authorities in London last month who suspected he was traveling with false documents, including a passport that listed a different name. He was allowed to fly to Kingston, Jamaica, and was arrested at the airport there.

Gordon waived his right to an extradition hearing.

The cocaine charges still exist, but because of extradition treaties, any future prosecution on those counts would have to be worked out between the Jamaican and US governments.

Gordon’s attorney, Bill Mauzy, said in court that the US doesn’t have jurisdiction to prosecute Gordon on the drug charges.