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Metro
4 days ago
- Metro
British flight attendant 'in tears' in court accused of smuggling 46kg of drugs
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video A former flight attendant from London appeared in court for the first time today, accused of smuggling £1,200,000 of synthetic cannabis. Charlotte May Lee, 21, from south London, was arrested earlier this month on suspicion of smuggling 46kg of the drug into Sri Lanka from Thailand. Today, she was seen walking into court in a white dress with her hands cuffed behind her, escorted into the Colombo court building. Witnesses said she appeared 'visibly upset' and tearful during the court proceedings, which saw authorities wheel out the cannabis seized from her luggage. She will appear in court again in two weeks. Last week, new photos obtained showed Charlotte dressed all in white at Colombo's Police Narcotic Unit just after her arrest. The other photos show the large amount of Kush – a synthetic form of cannabis – found in two black suitcases. She was working on a booze cruise in Thailand but decided to go to Sri Lanka for three weeks while she waited for her 30-day visa to renew. She is being held behind bars at Negombo Prison and told the Daily Mail: 'I had never seen them before. 'I didn't expect it at all when they pulled me over at the airport. I thought it was going to be filled with all my stuff.' The prison where she could end up, Welikada Prison, has been described as 'hell', with rats scuttling around and maggots in food. This cheap synthetic drug Charlotte is alleged of smuggling – that even contains ground-up human bones – has since raised concerns among experts. Kush is a psychoactive blend of addictive substances. It starts off with a plant leaf, which is then sprayed with a mixture made of synthetic cannabinoids, formaldehyde, and fentanyl. The drug even contains ground-up human bones, according to multiple reports. When smoked, it causes users to feel euphoria, as well as sending them to sleep. People have been killed as they fell asleep while walking, hit their heads against hard surfaces and stumbled into moving traffic. Since 2022, an even more addictive and deadly variant of kush has taken hold. This contains synthetic opioids called nitazenes, which are up to 25 times more potent than fentanyl. More Trending Dr Kars de Bruijne, who has written a recent report on the drug, explained why this new form of kush is even more sinister. The drug containing mashed-up human bones may have started as a rumour, but it might have become a reality in some cases. Dr de Bruijne explained: 'I've also been speaking to people in the judicial system, and they have said that there is an increase in cemeteries where graves have been opened.' The drug can also find itself mixed with other substances, such as rat poison, as it moves through the market. Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: Husband's tearful appeal for 'missing' wife he had murdered and buried under the stairs MORE: Robert Jenrick has a point but he has no business making it MORE: 'I've spent £20,000 on prostate cancer drug – but this new test could save NHS money'
Metro
22-05-2025
- Metro
New images of £1,200,000 cannabis haul Charlotte May Lee ‘didn't know was in suitcase'
New photos have revealed a massive haul of drugs that a former flight attendant denies she was carrying in two large suitcases. Charlotte May Lee, 21, from south London, was arrested last week on suspicion of smuggling 46kg of cannabis into Sri Lanka from Thailand. A set of new photos obtained by the Daily Mail shows her dressed all in white at Colombo's Police Narcotic Unit just after her arrest. The other photos show the large amount of Kush – a synthetic form of cannabis – found in two black suitcases. She was working on a booze cruise in Thailand but decided to go to Sri Lanka for three weeks while she waited for her 30-day visa to renew. She is being held behind bars at Negombo Prison and told the Daily Mail: 'I had never seen them before. 'I didn't expect it at all when they pulled me over at the airport. I thought it was going to be filled with all my stuff.' The prison where she could end up, Welikada Prison, has been described as 'hell', with rats scuttling around and maggots in food. Charlotte also revealed that she has not eaten food in days because it is too spicy. She said: 'I am trying my best to stay positive because what else can you do?' The 21-year-old also said she felt like she had 'no human rights' in the prison and that she was sleeping in a corridor with no beds or blankets. She believes the drugs were planted and explained that they must have been put in her suitcase while she was on a night out. The part-time beautician and former cabin crew worker for TUI had already packed her bags before her early flight, and that was when she claims they were put in her suitcase. She said: 'They must have planted it then…I know who did it.' Her detention bears a similarity to Bella May Culley – who was arrested at an airport in Georgia for trying to smuggle 14kg of cannabis. Both women had flown alone from Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi airport, having reportedly travelled there to meet a mysterious male. Both women are accused of being drug mules for organised crime gangs. Bella also faces a hefty sentence in an intimidating foreign prison in Georgia – Prison No. 5. Human rights groups have criticised the treatment of prisoners there, with a Human Rights Watch report finding it 'severely overcrowded'. check our news page.
Metro
22-05-2025
- Metro
New images of £1,200,000 cannabis haul ‘drugs mule' didn't know 'was in suitcase
New photos have revealed a massive haul of drugs that a former flight attendant denies she was carrying in two large suitcases. Charlotte May Lee, 21, from south London, was arrested last week on suspicion of smuggling 46kg of cannabis into Sri Lanka from Thailand. A set of new photos obtained by the Daily Mail shows her dressed all in white at Colombo's Police Narcotic Unit just after her arrest. The other photos show the large amount of Kush – a synthetic form of cannabis – found in two black suitcases. She was working on a booze cruise in Thailand but decided to go to Sri Lanka for three weeks while she waited for her 30-day visa to renew. She is being held behind bars at Negombo Prison and told the Daily Mail: 'I had never seen them before. 'I didn't expect it at all when they pulled me over at the airport. I thought it was going to be filled with all my stuff.' The prison where she could end up, Welikada Prison, has been described as 'hell', with rats scuttling around and maggots in food. Charlotte also revealed that she has not eaten food in days because it is too spicy. She said: 'I am trying my best to stay positive because what else can you do?' The 21-year-old also said she felt like she had 'no human rights' in the prison and that she was sleeping in a corridor with no beds or blankets. She believes the drugs were planted and explained that they must have been put in her suitcase while she was on a night out. The part-time beautician and former cabin crew worker for TUI had already packed her bags before her early flight, and that was when she claims they were put in her suitcase. She said: 'They must have planted it then…I know who did it.' Her detention bears a similarity to Bella May Culley – who was arrested at an airport in Georgia for trying to smuggle 14kg of cannabis. More Trending Both women had flown alone from Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi airport, having reportedly travelled there to meet a mysterious male. Both women are accused of being drug mules for organised crime gangs. Bella also faces a hefty sentence in an intimidating foreign prison in Georgia – Prison No. 5. Human rights groups have criticised the treatment of prisoners there, with a Human Rights Watch report finding it 'severely overcrowded'. Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: Drug 'containing ground-up human bones' at centre of 'mule' Charlotte May Lee case MORE: Similarities between Brit 'drug smuggler' held in Sri Lanka and Bella Culley MORE: These two 'vibrant' cities 914 miles apart will soon be connected by train
Scottish Sun
22-05-2025
- Scottish Sun
Brit ‘drug mule' Charlotte May Lee pictured in new mugshot along with huge £1.2m kush haul she ‘didn't know was in case'
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) BRITISH "drug smuggler" Charlotte May Lee has been pictured in a new mugshot alongside the huge £1.2 million drug stash she "didn't know was in her suitcase". The 21-year-old former air stewardess has a cautious look on her face as she stands in an glamorous, all-white outfit with sparkly sandals just moments after she was arrested. 10 Charlotte May Lee booking picture has been revealed Credit: Sri Lanka Police 10 Sri Lankan cops released a photo of the seized bags Charlotte was allegedly caught with Credit: Sri Lanka Police 10 Charlotte has been accused of trying to smuggle £1.2million worth of drugs into Sri Lanka Credit: Moyes Part-time beautician Charlotte was cuffed after stepping off a flight to Sri Lanka from Thailand last Monday. Her two suitcases are said to have been stuffed with 46kg of synthetic drug kush — which is 25 times more potent than opioid fentanyl. Other newly released images show the drugs in large vacuum-sealed bags that were allegedly stuffed into Charlotte's luggage when she arrived into the country's capital. Stacks upon stacks of the hermetically sealed packages are seen laid out on a table within Colombo's Police Narcotic Unit. The way in which the bags were packaged suggests the stash was packed with a top level of professionalism. Yesterday Brit wept in court as she was told she may not be sentenced for another 12 months. And even then she's been warned she could face 25 years behind bars in tough maximum security Welikada Prison if convicted of being a drug mule. After her first court appearance she will no longer be allowed to use her phone or contact her loved ones. A source told The Sun: 'Charlotte is crying a lot. The penny has dropped and she is more aware of her perilous situation. 'The jail is not fit for a rat to live in. And she has been told to get used to it. 10 10 The drug stash Charlotte is accused of smuggling Credit: Police Handout 10 Charlotte formerly worked as an air stewardess Credit: Tim Stewart 10 Charlotte wept in court as she was formally remanded in prison in Sri Lanka Credit: Tim Stewart 'She is a total mess. She hates the food, which is only rice with the occasional hot curry. 'The prison is so full that she has been lying in the corridor on a concrete floor with no pillow or sheet.' The Sun can reveal a mystery British man was waiting for Charlotte when she arrived on a flight to Colombo from Thailand last Monday. A source said: 'Charlotte had been going on about this man she was madly in love with. She met him in Bangkok. He was then waiting for her on touchdown in Sri Lanka. 'She obviously never got to meet him when she was arrested. Who is this man - the police should be investigating him. We understand he has even been in touch with Charlotte behind bars. We worry she is somehow under his spell.' Charlotte claimed on Tuesday the drugs - 25 times more potent than powerful opioid fentanyl - found in her suitcase were "planted" on her. The part-time beautician, of Chipstead in Surrey said she had "no idea" that there were drugs in her luggage when she left Bangkok. She claimed: "I had never seen them 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. Bella May Culley link By Annabel Bate, Foreign News Reporter FEARS are growing that Brit "drug smuggling" cases involving Bella Culley and Charlotte Lee could be linked, as similarities including a "mystery man" have emerged. Within a single day of 18-year-old backpacker Bella getting arrested in Georgia, Charlotte, 21, suffered the same fate over 3,000 miles away. Both women are believed to have used the same airport to depart, allegedly with the drugs on them, as cops say they flew solo from Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi airport. A potential link between the two cases appears likely to form part of the investigations being executed by the Georgian and Sri Lankan authorities. Another similarity between the cases is how well the discovered narcotics were stashed. Shocking images published by customs officials in Sri Lanka show how drugs had been allegedly stuffed into Charlotte's luggage in large vacuum-sealed bags. Bella's alleged stash was also discovered in stacked, airtight packages pointing to a similar-style operation. And in another twist, the two had individually told their loved ones they planned on meeting a mystery man during their travels. Bella revealed to her family she was meeting an unknown man in the Philippines who had moved to the country from the North East. The backpacker's social media went on to show her clearly in the company of a male stranger - but he was never clearly pictured or named. Meanwhile Charlotte, a former TUI stewardess, left for Thailand weeks ago, with relatives saying she had made vague comments about meeting a man in Thailand. She had recently endured a painful break-up, they added. If found guilty, south Londoner Charlotte could face a 25-year sentence. And a sentence ranging from 20 years to life could be a possibility for teen Bella from County Durham, according to prosecutors. "I had been in Bangkok the night before and had already packed my clothes because my flight was really early. "So I left my bags in the hotel room and headed for the night out. As they were already packed I didn't check them again in the morning." The young Brit believes the huge amount of illegal substances were planted in her luggage in a planned move by dangerous dealers in Southeast Asia. And Charlotte, a former TUI stewardess, has now said: "I know who did it." Charlotte said the jail shower is just a bucket of water with a broken TV the only activity available. Another major issue the Brit, from Coulsdon, is facing is eating and keeping clean. Kush, a highly addictive synthetic drug, has claimed the lives of thousands in West Africa where it first appeared in 2022 - and is spreading globally at an alarming rate. The dirt-cheap drug is cut with an array of additives including acetone, the opioid tramadol and formalin, a toxic chemical commonly used to preserve bodies in mortuaries. 10 The maggot-infested 'hellhole' prison where Charlotte faces being locked up 10 Charlotte May Lee faces a long stay behind bars before she is sentenced Credit: Tim Stewart
The Irish Sun
22-05-2025
- The Irish Sun
Brit ‘drug mule' Charlotte May Lee pictured in new mugshot along with huge £1.2m kush haul she ‘didn't know was in case'
BRITISH "drug smuggler" Charlotte May Lee has been pictured in a new mugshot alongside the huge £1.2 million drug stash she "didn't know was in her suitcase". The 21-year-old former air stewardess has a cautious look on her face as she stands in an glamorous, all-white outfit with sparkly sandals 10 Charlotte May Lee booking picture has been revealed Credit: Sri Lanka Police 10 Sri Lankan cops released a photo of the seized bags Charlotte was allegedly caught with Credit: Sri Lanka Police 10 Charlotte has been accused of trying to smuggle £1.2million worth of drugs into Sri Lanka Credit: Moyes Part-time beautician Charlotte was cuffed after stepping off a flight to Sri Lanka from Thailand last Monday. Her two suitcases are said to have been stuffed with 46kg of synthetic drug kush — which is 25 times more potent than opioid fentanyl. Other newly released images show the drugs in large vacuum-sealed bags that were allegedly stuffed into Charlotte's luggage when she arrived into the country's capital. Stacks upon stacks of the hermetically sealed packages are seen laid out on a table within Colombo's Police Narcotic Unit. read more news The way in which the bags were packaged suggests the stash was packed with a top level of professionalism. Yesterday Brit wept in court as she was told And even then she's been warned she After her first court appearance she will no longer be allowed to use her phone or contact her loved ones. Most read in The Sun A source told The Sun: 'Charlotte is crying a lot. The penny has dropped and she is more aware of her perilous situation. 'The jail is not fit for a rat to live in. And she has been told to get used to it. 10 10 The drug stash Charlotte is accused of smuggling Credit: Police Handout 10 Charlotte formerly worked as an air stewardess Credit: Tim Stewart 10 Charlotte wept in court as she was formally remanded in prison in Sri Lanka Credit: Tim Stewart 'She is a total mess. She hates the food, which is only rice with the occasional hot curry. 'The prison is so full that she has been lying in the corridor on a concrete floor with no pillow or sheet.' The Sun can reveal a mystery British man was waiting for Charlotte when she arrived on a flight to Colombo from Thailand last Monday. A source said: 'Charlotte had been going on about this man she was madly in love with. She met him in Bangkok. He was then waiting for her on touchdown in Sri Lanka. 'She obviously never got to meet him when she was arrested. Who is this man - the police should be investigating him. We understand he has even been in touch with Charlotte claimed on Tuesday the drugs - 25 times more potent than powerful opioid fentanyl - found in her The part-time beautician, of Chipstead in Surrey said she had "no idea" that there were drugs in her luggage when she left Bangkok. She claimed: "I had never seen them 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. Bella May Culley link By Annabel Bate, Foreign News Reporter FEARS are growing that Brit "drug smuggling" cases involving Bella Culley and Charlotte Lee could be linked, as similarities including a "mystery man" have emerged. Within a single day of Both women are believed to have used the same airport to depart, allegedly with the drugs on them, as cops say they flew solo from Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi airport. A potential link between the two cases appears likely to form part of the investigations being executed by the Georgian and Sri Lankan authorities. Another similarity between the cases is how well the discovered narcotics were stashed. Shocking images published by customs officials in Sri Lanka show how drugs had been allegedly stuffed into Charlotte's luggage in large vacuum-sealed bags. Bella's alleged stash was also discovered in stacked, airtight packages pointing to a similar-style operation. And in another twist, the two had individually told their loved ones they planned on meeting a mystery man during their travels. Bella revealed to her family she was meeting an unknown man in the Philippines who had moved to the country from the North East. The backpacker's social media went on to show her clearly in the company of a male stranger - but he was never clearly pictured or named. Meanwhile Charlotte, a former TUI stewardess, left for Thailand weeks ago, with relatives saying She had recently endured a painful break-up, they added. If found guilty, south Londoner Charlotte could face a 25-year sentence. And a sentence ranging from 20 years to life could be a possibility for teen Bella from County Durham, according to prosecutors. "I had been in Bangkok the night before and had already packed my clothes because my flight was really early. "So I left my bags in the hotel room and headed for the night out. As they were already packed I didn't check them again in the morning." The young Brit believes the huge amount of illegal substances were planted in her luggage in a planned move by dangerous dealers in Southeast Asia. And Charlotte, a former TUI stewardess, has now said: "I know who did it." Charlotte said the jail shower is just a bucket of water with a broken TV the only activity available. Another major issue the Brit, from Coulsdon, is facing is eating and keeping clean. Kush, a highly addictive synthetic drug, has claimed the lives of thousands in West Africa where it first appeared in 2022 - and is spreading globally at an alarming rate. The dirt-cheap drug is cut with an array of additives including acetone, the opioid tramadol and formalin, a toxic chemical commonly used to preserve bodies in mortuaries. 10 The maggot-infested 'hellhole' prison where Charlotte faces being locked up 10 Charlotte May Lee faces a long stay behind bars before she is sentenced Credit: Tim Stewart 10 Charlotte May Lee is in jail in Sri Lanka
