In an emotional court appearance in Georgia, the 19-year-old said: ‘I didn’t want to do this. I was forced by torture. I just wanted to travel. I study at the university… to become a nurse.’
Suspected British drug smuggler Bella Culley sobbed today appearing in a Georgian court – claiming she had been “forced by torture”.
The teenager faces life behind bars after being arrested earlier this year for allegedly taking cannabis into the ex-Soviet state. The 19-year-old appeared in court in capital Tbilisi on Tuesday where she cried – with a lawyer handing her a tissue for her tears.
She told the court: “I didn’t want to do this. I was forced by torture. I just wanted to travel. I study at the university… to become a nurse. All I wanted to do was to travel and this happened to me. I’m clean – I had nothing in my blood test. I wanted to make my family proud. Thanks for listening.”
READ MORE: Bella Culley’s dad visits daughter, 18, behind Georgia prison bars for first time
The youngster’s dad, Niel, and aunt were present. Bella’s lawyer Malkaz Salakaia said his client was told she would be approached by some people in Tbilisi airport, but this did not happen as she was taken by the customs officer in Georgia. The lawyer asked Bella to show the court her arm with a scar – apparently caused by an iron in Thailand.
Bella stood up, showing the court her right arm and cleared her tears before sitting down looking at her family. Mr Salakaia said his client was tortured with a hot iron on her right arm. Bella approached a policeman to seek help but he turned out to be part of the criminal group too, the lawyer told the court.
The Brit went missing in Thailand before turning up in Georgia in May, accused of taking in about 14kg of cannabis and hashish into the country. Her lawyer said there was no risk of her leaving the country, asking for bail but was denied.
The judge Lela Kalichenko told the court that Bella, from Bellingham on Teesside, is pregnant and had not committed any crime before. She seems young and the family supports her, the judge said. Bella says she was forced to take the case and did not know what was inside, the judge added. Bella left the court crying – and was told by her family: “Try not to worry. Good girl.” She is due to appear in court again on 10 July.
Her newly-appointed lawyer Mr Salakaia previously said in May: “We will defend her innocence at the court.”
At a meeting in May, her lawyer Mr Salakaia reportedly said he had to explain to Bella where she was geographically. He said Bella was in “good health” – but would not describe her as an adequate adult, the BBC reported.
Their first meeting was said to have lasted two hours. The lawyer said his client was ready to defend herself in court. Mr Salakaia said Bella did not have any complaints about the location of detention. Asked whether he would describe Bella as an adequate adult, he answered “no”. His impression was that she was “not far from childhood”. During the meeting, Bella was reportedly also giving evidence to investigators.