Ex-flight attendant reportedly caught with 101 pounds of drugs in luggage
Sri Lankan authorities have seized nearly 60 kilograms of potent synthetic cannabis that foreigners tried to smuggle in this month in three separate cases, a customs official said Saturday. The majority of the drugs were reportedly seized from a former flight attendant from England who authorties say had over 100 pounds of the drug in her suitcases.
The South Asian island has long been considered a transit point for international drug smugglers, and all three suspects — from Britain, India and Thailand — could face life imprisonment if convicted.
The 21-year-old British woman was arrested on May 12, with customs officers saying she was stopped with 46 kilograms (101 pounds) of kush — a synthetic drug containing powerful opioids — packed in two suitcases.
"This could be the biggest drug bust at the Colombo airport in recent times," said Customs Additional Director General Seevali Arukgoda.
British media, including the BBC, have identified the woman as Charlotte May Lee, a former cabin crew member from London, who had flown to Sri Lanka from Thailand.
She is being held in detention at a prison near Colombo airport and is contact with her family, her lawyer told the BBC.
The BBC reported that she denied knowledge of drugs in her luggage, and claimed they were planted at her hotel in Bangkok.
Her legal representative, Sampath Perera, told the BBC that his team was visiting her daily in prison to provide support and monitor her wellbeing.
"I had never seen them [the drugs] before. I didn't expect it all when they pulled me over at the airport. I thought it was going to be filled with all my stuff," Lee told the Daily Mail from prison.
On May 16, a 33-year-old Indian man was arrested at the northern seaport of Kankesanthurai.
Arukgoda said that he had been carrying four kilograms of kush.
He too has been handed over to the anti-narcotics police for further investigations.
On May 18, a 21-year-old Thai man was stopped at Colombo airport. He is accused of attempting to smuggle in nearly eight kilograms of kush.
The drug has wreaked havoc in West African countries in recent years, especially in Sierra Leone, te Associated Press reported. In 2014, Sierra Leone President Julius Maada Bio declared a war on kush, calling it an epidemic and a national threat.
Sri Lankan authorities have previously seized large quantities of heroin off its shores, saying it suggested the island is being used as a transit hub for narcotics being reshipped onward.
In October, a Sri Lankan court sentenced 10 Iranian men to life imprisonment after they pleaded guilty to smuggling more than 111 kilograms of heroin.
The men were among 17 arrested in Sri Lankan waters in April 2016 while transporting narcotics aboard an Iranian trawler.
In 2023, nine Iranians received life sentences in a separate drug smuggling case.
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Yahoo
29 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Six arrested on suspicion of smuggling hundreds of migrants into UK to work in care homes
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Geek Girl Authority
an hour ago
- Geek Girl Authority
DOCTOR WHO: 5 Jaw-Dropping Moments From the Season 2 Finale
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Well, I don't entirely believe she's gone. At the very least, Mrs. Flood is still out there. I enjoyed seeing our favorite Time Lord use the Vindicator — a device he constructed in episode two to bring Belinda (Varada Sethu) home — to send Omega back from whence he came. Lucky Number 13 DOCTOR WHO Season 2 Episode 8, 'The Reality War.' Photo credit: James Pardon/BBC Studios/Bad Wolf I love a good pleasant surprise . Jodie Whittaker reprises her role as the Thirteenth Doctor in 'The Reality War.' She and Gatwa boast an easygoing, vibrant chemistry despite their brief scene aboard the TARDIS. Thirteen imparts wisdom to Fifteen regarding his departure and impresses the importance of getting it right — rupturing the Time Vortex with all that regeneration energy could be detrimental to all creation. RELATED: Doctor Who : 11 Easter Eggs in 'Boom' Fifteen tells Thirteen he loves her, and it's a profound, resonant moment of self-love for the Doctor. I especially love Thirteen contemplating telling Yaz (Mandip Gill) she loves her. Fifteen informs Thirteen that she doesn't, but Yaz knows. Oof. Talk about a punch to the gut. Thirteen's remark about not liking Fifteen's redecorating is a fun dig, as is Fifteen's line about being surprised Thirteen isn't 'the other guy.' He's always turning up. Friendly shots fired at David Tennant, y'all. The pair also has an exchange about how stuck in their ways they are ('timey-wimey,' anyone?), which is interesting considering how many different faces the Doctor has had. Yet, there's always a desire to cling to a particular visage for a bit longer as the inevitable regeneration takes effect. Even our eponymous Gallifreyan hates change and fears the unknown. Getting Home to Poppy DOCTOR WHO Season 2 Episode 8, 'The Reality War.' Photo credit: James Pardon/BBC Studios/Bad Wolf Who knew Captain Poppy (Sienna-Robyn Mavanga-Phipps) from 'Space Babies' would have so much narrative importance? After her debut in Fifteen's first season, she reappears in Season 2 Episode 5, 'The Story & the Engine,' but only to Belinda. Then, she's Belinda and the Doctor's (aka John Smith) daughter in the Season 2 penultimate episode, 'Wish World,' before becoming Belinda's actual daughter. RELATED: Geek Girl Authority Crush of the Week: Doctor Who 's Ruby Sunday Of course, Poppy's eventual disappearance following the undoing of Conrad's wish world activates Ruby's (Millie Gibson) Spidey senses. Fifteen is known for risking it all to save one person, which he's done for Ruby, Belinda and even Susan Triad (Susan Twist). Naturally, when he learns he has a daughter, our Doctor springs into action and willingly sacrifices himself to shift all of time so Poppy exists again. Before he regenerates, though, the Doctor reunites with Belinda and Poppy. This time, we learn that Poppy is the reason Belinda wanted to go home so badly at the start. We see a collection of scenes from past episodes in which dialogue about Poppy is retroactively inserted, from Belinda believing she's dying in 'The Well' to after she and the Doctor meet young Conrad in 'Lucky Day.' RELATED: 6 Doctor Who Episodes That Show the Eleventh Doctor's Personality Real Heartbreak Sure, this gives us a new perspective on those scenes. The plan was always to return to Earth on May 24, 2025, at 7:30 am, for her daughter. While the choice to end Belinda's arc with motherhood is strange, given she's never mentioned it before (although it does call into question how much of actual reality we've seen this season), the real heartbreak is in the Doctor realizing he doesn't have a child. That's the meat of it all. Oh, Hello DOCTOR WHO Season 2 Episode 8, 'The Reality War.' Photo credit: BBC Studios/Bad Wolf As much as I don't want Fifteen to go, I enjoyed his pre-regeneration moments while he's alone in the TARDIS. He decides to regenerate in open view of space, with Joy (played by Nicola Coughlan before she turned into a star) twinkling before him. Joy to the world, indeed. Fifteen lands on 'joy' as the descriptor for his experience with this face and body — an 'absolute joy.' And it feels fitting for this Doctor to leave with joy in his hearts and a smile on his face. He simply radiates optimism and a buoyant, effervescent energy. RELATED: Read our Doctor Who recaps Who Is She? So, after looking like a star himself as he regenerates, the Fifteenth Doctor transforms into … Billie Piper, who seemingly breaks the fourth wall to greet us. Now, I have thoughts. I don't think Piper is the Sixteenth Doctor. Firstly, she's not introduced as such in the closing credits, whereas Gatwa and Whittaker are credited as the Doctor, respectively. Secondly, the new Doctor is usually announced well in advance of the current Doctor's regeneration. Thirdly, there's an intriguing shot of the TARDIS console while Fifteen regenerates. Could this familiar face have sprung from the TARDIS, considering how inextricably linked it is to Rose Tyler? Could she be The Moment? An alternate Rose? Or perhaps she's the TARDIS herself, having taken on a new face (the TARDIS was previously played by Suranne Jones in 'The Doctor's Wife'). What if Billie Piper is meant to be someone else entirely? That said, if she really is the next Doctor, it wouldn't be the first time our Time Lord has regenerated into a familiar face from the series. Regardless, I hope Russell T Davies has something exciting in store for us. Let's not retread old ground, please. Although I highly suspect that Piper is a placeholder, as it were, and will transform into the Sixteenth Doctor, whoever they might be. Seasons 1 and 2 of Doctor Who are now streaming on Disney+. DOCTOR WHO: Our Favorite Easter Eggs From 'Lux' Contact: [email protected] What I do: I'm GGA's Managing Editor, a Senior Contributor, and Press Coordinator. I manage, contribute, and coordinate. Sometimes all at once. Joking aside, I oversee day-to-day operations for GGA, write, edit, and assess interview opportunities/press events. Who I am: Before moving to Los Angeles after studying theater in college, I was born and raised in Amish country, Ohio. No, I am not Amish, even if I sometimes sport a modest bonnet. Bylines in: Tell-Tale TV, Culturess, Sideshow Collectibles, and inkMend on Medium. Critic: Rotten Tomatoes, CherryPicks, and the Hollywood Creative Alliance.
Boston Globe
an hour ago
- Boston Globe
New searches are underway in Portugal near where toddler Madeleine McCann disappeared in 2007
The teams were seen using pickaxes, shovels and chainsaws to clear dense vegetation and dig near a derelict building. Firefighters pumped water out of a well. Advertisement Almost two decades on, investigators in the U.K., Portugal and Germany are still piecing together what happened on the night the toddler disappeared. She was in the same room as her brother and sister — 2-year-old twins — while their parents, Kate and Gerry, had dinner with friends outside. Portuguese and German police investigating the 2007 disappearance of British toddler Madeleine McCann carried out searches near Lagos, southern Portugal Tuesday. Joao Matos/Associated Press Portuguese police said Monday that detectives were acting on a request from a German public prosecutor as they carry out 'a broad range' of searches this week in the area of Lagos, in southern Portugal. The main suspect is a German national identified by media as Christian Brueckner, who is currently serving a seven-year prison sentence in Germany for raping a 72-year-old woman in Portugal in 2005. He is under investigation on suspicion of murder in the McCann case but hasn't been charged. He spent many years in Portugal, including in Praia da Luz, around the time of the child's disappearance. Brueckner has denied any involvement. Advertisement The last time police resumed searches in the case was in 2023, when detectives from the three countries took part in an operation searching near a dam and a reservoir about 50 kilometers (30 miles) from the resort. McCann's family marked the 18th anniversary of her disappearance last month, and expressed their determination to keep searching.
