Bella May Culley is locked up at Women’s Prison No.5 in Rustavi, south of capital Tbilisi, Georgia — which is understood to be home to double murderer Magda Papidze
Suspected British teen drug smuggler Bella May is locked up in a Georgian jail which is also home to a notorious child killer. The 18-year-old vanished in Thailand before turning up in the ex-Soviet state where she faces life behind bars after allegedly importing cannabis.
Bella is being held at Women’s Prison No.5 in Rustavi, south of capital Tbilisi — understood to be home to murderer Magda Papidze. The Georgian woman struck her husband, Omar Kaphiashvili, with a sledgehammer while he slept and strangled her five-year-old son Tornike Kaphiashvili. Bella is highly unlikely to come into contact with the double killer, whose then lawyer last year described how Papidze spent 23 hours a day in a small cell.
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It comes as we yesterday reported how Bella – who has said she is pregnant – could bring up her baby behind bars in Georgia.
She had vanished in Thailand before turning up in Georgia where she was on TV handcuffed to a court official.
The Brit – who was arrested at Tbilisi International Airport on May 11 – is accused of carrying about 12kg of cannabis and around 2kg of hashish into Georgia.
If she is found guilty, the teenager, from Billingham on Teesside, faces a lengthy prison spell — which could be life in the worst-case scenario.
On Tuesday, Bella told a court she was pregnant.
Bella’s dad, Niel has travelled to Georgia. Back in the UK, her granddad has previously said Bella had told him she was travelling to the Philippines to see a lad.
A guilty outcome for Bella would mean she joins the ranks of convicted criminals in Georgia, including Papidze.
In 2016, Papidze, now in her mid-30s, was found guilty of the two murders and handed a life sentence.
Omar’s body was discovered in the entrance of the Tbilisi apartment building where the family lived in late 2015.
And, nearby, Tornike’s body was found in a parked car. Papidze had claimed her husband and son had gone to get Georgian cheese bread but not returned.
In her version of events, she went to find them and discovered their bodies.
Droplets of blood were initially found on the staircase – and, inside, a drop was discovered under a table.
When processed with a special chemical, bloodstains were found throughout the living room.
And investigation revealed Papidze had a lover – and was pregnant with his child.
Papidze, intent on starting a new life, had planned the crime in advance, the prosecution argued. After her arrest she had an abortion.
The murderer’s diary contained a description of the plan to commit the crime – though she claimed she did not write it, expert analysis confirmed the authenticity of her handwriting.
A diary entry read: “Hammer (wrapped in cloth), Large bags opened, prepared sheets ready, towel ready.
“Basin filled with water, kettle Clothes prepared for both. I’ve prepared them. Clothes. Cover the seats with black Large bags”.
Shortly before the crime, footage captured Papidze shopping with her son where she was seen buying a sledgehammer.
She struck her husband while he slept, dragged his body out into the corridor and left it in the stairwell, according to the indictment.
Omar’s death was recorded as an open blunt head trauma, indicating one or several heavy blows, a medical examination report said.
Papidze initially confessed but later changed her story and began denying everything – pleading not guilty.
Last year, Papidze filed a motion with the Georgian Court of Appeals requesting a transfer so she could live under more tolerable conditions behind bars – which could have meant either another facility entirely or a different part of the same jail.
However, her request was promptly denied.
The double killer’s then lawyer, Eka Kobesashvili, last year said of Papidze’s living conditions inside prison: “She lives in a small cell where she spends 23 hours a day.
“She gets one hour of so-called ‘air time’ — which in reality means another small concrete cell, only with bars instead of a roof. From there she can see the sky and breathe, but nothing else.
“She has various health conditions — endocrine issues, diabetes… These problems are directly linked to the conditions she’s lived under for years now.”
There were 377 female inmates in Georgia’s prisons as of the start of February – including 99 foreign nationals.