"Prison conditions can be harsh, access to healthcare limited and British nationals have previously died while in custody in Southeast Asia.
Bella Culley told a court that she had been forced to traffic the stash from Thailand by a gang who branded her with an iron and forced her to watch execution videos
Culley arrived back in the UK with her mother after being freed from a Georgian prison in November last year.
She was arrested six months before at Tbilisi airport after being accused of attempting to smuggle 12kg of marijuana and 2kg of hashish into the country.
She was found guilty by a Georgian court and sentenced to five months and 25 days in prison – the total time she had already spent in custody.
Culley initially faced a maximum penalty of up to 15 years or life in prison.
Her family paid a £137,000 fine as part of a plea deal to see her release.
Georgian prosecutors were considering a two-year sentence but 'decided to consider the time she has already served', case prosecutor Vakhtang Tsalughelashvili said, and asked for her release.
Her mother, Lyanne Kennedy, said she had believed that she would only see her daughter in person again when her grandchild was born."
Framing: assertive ·
First seen: 2026-09-14 ·
Last seen: 2026-09-14 ·
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