Who is Charlotte May Lee? Brit air hostess jailed in Sri Lanka over drug smuggling accusations
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window)
Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
CHARLOTTE MAY LEE is a 21-year-old British woman who was arrested at Colombo Airport in Sri Lanka, under serious accusations of drug smuggling.
She is facing up to a year behind bars before her trial and sentencing after her first court appearance, and this is everything we know about her.
Sign up for Scottish Sun
newsletter
Sign up
4
Charlotte May Lee, 21, was accused of smuggling nearly £1.5million worth of kush into Sri Lanka from Thailand
4
Family and friends worry as Charlotte awaits trial and sentencing from a high-security prison in Sri Lanka
4
The former air hostess shared snaps from her travels on social media prior to her arrest
Who is Charlotte May Lee?
Originally from Coulsdon in South London, Charlotte, 21, is a beauty technician who was working in Chipstead, Surrey and training in eyelash extensions before her arrest abroad.
Prior to her most recent role as a nail tech, Charlotte worked as an air hostess for TUI until around a year ago.
Her Instagram highlights are filled with snaps from around the world in European destinations including the Greek islands and Ibiza, and further afield in Egypt, Cape Verde, and the Caribbean.
Trips to Thailand
A well-seasoned traveller, Charlotte's first trip to Thailand was to celebrate her 21st birthday with her older sister.
Upon returning from her first trip, friends report that Charlotte had plans to go back to Thailand because she 'wanted to work', while relatives say she mentioned meeting a man on her next visit.
They shared: "Charlotte was vague before leaving, but just said she was going to meet a British guy who can't come home.'
4
Sri Lanka arrest
Charlotte landed at Colombo International Airport in Sri Lanka after flying in from Bangkok on Monday, May 12, 2025, and was arrested upon arrival under allegations of smuggling nearly £1.5million worth of kush found in her luggage.
Kush, which is a potent strain of marijuana cut with synthetic and dangerous additives including acetone, formalin, and tramadol, was first seen in Sierra Leone in 2022.
Charlotte's alleged possession and arrest marks Sri Lanka's biggest kush bust ever, and could result in her serving a 20 to 25-year sentence in Sri Lanka's maximum-security Welikada Prison.
However, Charlotte maintains her innocence, insisting that the drugs were planted on her.
Many have been quick to draw comparisons between Charlotte's case and Bella Culley's.
Bella is an 18-year-old who lost contact with her family on a solo trip in Thailand before re-appearing at Tbilisi International Airport in Georgia just a day before Charlotte's arrest, also being detained under smuggling charges.
Although the two have never met, both young women were in Bangkok's airport alone before their arrests, and both were allegedly found with large quantities of cannabis in their bags.
Bella was found with 13kg of marijuana, and Charlotte, 46kg.
Both women also reportedly told friends and family back home that they were meeting a man in Thailand.
Family and friends' reactions
As Charlotte awaits trial with limited phone access, loved ones have shared their concerns for her wellbeing - especially given the conditions in Negombo Prison, where she will be held for up to 12 more months.
Behind bars Charlotte told MailOnline: "It is hard. I feel as though I have no human rights here.'
"There are no beds, no blankets. And where you sleep is like a long corridor with lots of other women.'
"I am sleeping on a concrete floor - literally. All I have is my jumper as a pillow.'
She hasn't been able to change her clothes, take her ADHD medication, or to eat daily, as the food served has been too spicy for her to tolerate.
A family friend said: 'We're frantically worried. She was arrested then seemingly abandoned and is rotting in a jail cell. She's very scared.'
"At the moment she can have visitors from 9.30am til 4.30pm, although there is no-one to go and see her in Sri Lanka, and her family are not flying out to meet her," another friend added.
If Charlotte is found guilty, the British Embassy will only be able to visit her at Welikada Prison every six months.
The jail is reported to be at over double its capacity, and has even worse conditions for its female inmates.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mirror
5 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Return of the Mack star Mark Morrison's team hit out as battery charge dropped
Mark Morrison, whose song Return of the Mack topped the UK charts in 1996, was taken into custody on Saturday but denied that any battery occurred at Le Bar à Vin in Palm Beach, Florida A battery charge against British singer Mark Morrison - best known for his 1996 hit Return of the Mack - has been dropped. The musician, 51, was taken into custody on Saturday after an alleged altercation at Le Bar à Vin in Palm Beach, Florida. However, the star's lawyers have today confirmed he was at the restaurant to talk to the manager and attempt to collect payment on behalf of a local singer who had performed at the venue. Although the "conversation escalated", Mr Morrison's lawyers said no physical altercation happened and now police have been able to dismiss the battery charge. In a statement, King Legal Group said: "The decision to nolle prosse (formally decline prosecution) ends what should never have been a criminal matter in the first place. "Mr Morrison has consistently and unequivocally denied that any battery occurred. There was no physical altercation—only a demand for fairness and accountability. The evidence never supported criminal intent or conduct." The legal team explained how Mr Morrison, whose track Return of the Mack spent two weeks as UK number one in April 1996, values standing up for what he believes in. However, they suggested race may have played a role in how the singer was treated. "While we are relieved the State has dismissed the charge, the underlying context cannot be ignored. The refusal to pay — coupled with how quickly the situation was criminalised — raises legitimate concerns about whether race played a role in how Mr Morrison was treated. It's not lost on us that advocating for fair pay, especially as a Black man in a position of leadership, can be met with suspicion instead of dialogue," the statement added. "Mr Morrison has spent years supporting local artists and standing up for what's right. That won't change. He is grateful for those who stood by him, and he remains committed to uplifting the artistic community in Palm Beach County and beyond. Towards that end, and in furtherance of Mr Morrison's commitment to his community, he is donating the $1000.00 (£730) bond used to secure his appearance, to Little Smiles, a local children's charity." Mr Morrison posed for a mugshot in a blue jumpsuit before he was released on Sunday morning. The musician has had a long history of both musical success and legal troubles. He burst onto the music scene in the mid-90s, enjoyed significant success with Return of the Mack. The song became an anthem of its time, widely regarded as one of the defining tracks of the 1990s R&B movement. Its success propelled Mr Morrison into the spotlight, and he quickly became one of the genre's most promising stars.
Scottish Sun
6 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
Russia using horror AI kamikaze drone that ‘chooses its own target' as Ukraine now faces blitz of over ‘500 every night'
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) VLADIMIR Putin has begun deploying kamikaze drones that select their own targets using AI in a fresh assault on Ukraine. The country now faces over 500 attacks every night, just days after Kharkiv was rocked overnight by a downpour of missiles. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 5 Fire and smoke rise in Ukraine following a Russian drone and missile strike Credit: Reuters 5 Kyiv is seen engulfed in flames following a Russian drone attack Credit: Reuters 5 Reports said the UAV-V2U is being used to close in on the northeastern city of Sumy, while Putin ramps up drone production and builds new launch sites. Some 70 units a day are now being made compared to just 21 last year, according to Ukraine's military intelligence. This is largely thanks to help from China, the agency has said, as the UAV is "mostly assembled from Chinese-manufactured components." Beijing has repeatedly denied supplying drones or weapon components to Russia, whilst Trump and Biden have both hit China with sanctions to stop it getting access to computer chips. Marking a new escalation in the war, the drones use camera images to navigate and AI to independently locate targets. The Defence Intelligence of Ukraine said: "The key feature of the drone is its ability to autonomously search for and select targets using artificial intelligence. "Its computing system is based on the Chinese Leetop A203 minicomputer, with a high-speed processor assembly built on the NVIDIA Jetson Orin module." This comes just hours after drones and missiles were launched at Kyiv as Russian Tu-22M3 strategic bombers were reportedly unleashed to rain hell on the infamous Snake Island in the Black Sea. Moscow launched a massive strike on Rivne using its Tu-22M3 and Tu-95MS strategic bombers to hit Dubny airbase. Squadrons of these fighter jets were targeted and destroyed last week in Kyiv's daring Operation Spiderweb. Russia bombs Kyiv killing 4 in blitz as Putin plots revenge for Op Spiderweb Another key Ukrainian military airport - Hostomel - was also attacked as Putin sought revenge for the humiliating attack. Polish armed forces command said Nato fighter jets were patrolling due to 'intensive air attack by the Russian Federation on Ukrainian territory'. Just days ago, Kharkiv was rocked overnight as 48 kamikaze drones, along with missiles and guided bombs, slammed into residential areas, according to the city's mayor. 'We have a lot of damage,' Ihor Terekhov said. More than 50 explosions rocked Kharkiv, with the mayor adding it was 'the most powerful attack' on the city of the 39-month war. In the latest terror strikes on civilians, 18 multi-story buildings and 13 private houses were hit and damaged. In Kyiv, a dramatic tower block video filmed by a resident showed the terror of another Putin strike on civilians as flames from the exploding drone shot some 80ft up the building. Three were killed and at least 21 wounded, including a six-weeks-old baby, and a 14-year-old girl. A woman, 26, trapped under a slab of concrete was eventually freed three hours after the strike, and was seen being stretchered to an ambulance. Ukraine's foreign minister Andrii Sybiha described how hundreds of drones and missiles "rained down" on his country overnight. He wrote in a social media post: "Kharkiv had a particularly terrible night. "People were injured and killed, and the energy infrastructure was also damaged." Sybiha added there were further strikes in the Donetsk, Dnipro, Ternopil and Odesa regions. 5 The Kursk region after being struck by a Russian drone attack Credit: Reuters
Scottish Sun
7 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
‘Deceptive' cop who weighed down laptop keys to make it look like he was working barred from policing
The officer would have been sacked had he not quit KEYS-CON COPS 'Deceptive' cop who weighed down laptop keys to make it look like he was working barred from policing Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) A COP who weighed down laptop keys to make it look like he was working from home was barred from policing. PC Liam Reakes's actions cost his force more than 100 hours. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 2 Reakes admitted opening a blank Word document and holding down the Z key for long periods Credit: Getty Concerns were raised about his efforts before a September 2024 audit of keystrokes flagged his total as much higher than others doing similar jobs. Reakes would have been sacked had he not quit in Yeovil, Somerset. A panel found he committed gross misconduct. Reakes did not attend the hearing. He admitted opening a blank Word document and holding down the Z key for long periods. He denyied this was to give a false impression he was working from home. Det Supt Larisa Hunt said: 'PC Reakes was the subject of an action plan and was allocated a tutor due to concerns over his performance prior to the keyboard audit being carried out. 'The use of any device or system to replicate keyboard activity is wholly wrong and deceptive and the public will be rightly outraged at this behaviour. 'Not only has he let down those he made a commitment to serve and protect but he's also let down his colleagues, who are continuing to deal with significant pressure and workloads.'
