A pregnant British teenager, Bella May Culley, has been freed from a Georgian prison after spending nearly six months in custody on drug-smuggling charges, following a plea agreement with prosecutors.
Culley, 19, was arrested in May at Tbilisi International Airport and accused of attempting to smuggle 12kg of marijuana and 2kg of hashish into Georgia. She was convicted by a Georgian court on Monday and sentenced to five months and 25 days the exact period she had already served in detention.
As part of the plea deal, Culley’s family paid a fine of 500,000 lari (about £137,000).
Georgian prosecutors had initially considered a two-year sentence, but decided to take into account her time in custody, according to case prosecutor Vakhtang Tsalughelashvili.
The ruling prompted emotional scenes in court, as Culley and her mother, Lyanne Kennedy, wept upon hearing the verdict. “It was totally unexpected,” Kennedy told media, adding that she had feared she might not see her daughter again until her grandchild was born.
Culley’s lawyer, Malkhaz Salakaia, confirmed that she would have her passport returned and would be allowed to leave Georgia.
He also revealed that Culley initially faced a maximum sentence of 15 years to life imprisonment.
Under Georgian law, financial plea agreements can be used to reduce or eliminate sentences in certain cases, including drug-related offences.
Culley, who hails from Teesside, north-east England, was reportedly missing in Thailand prior to her arrest.
She has maintained that she was tortured in Thailand and forced to carry the drugs before arriving in Georgia.
Salakaia said she showed visible signs of physical abuse upon her arrival, claims that are yet to be independently verified.
