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Daily Mirror
24-05-2025
- Daily Mirror
Criminologist shares 7 things she's learned talking to drug mules and handlers
Dr Fleetwood, senior lecturer in criminology at City St George's, University of London, and author of Drug Mules: Women in the International Cocaine Trade on how traffickers pick drug mules and what they tell them A criminologist who has spent a decade studying the fate of drug mules reveals the the grim reality behind the instagram lifestyle. Bella Culley, from Teeside, was arrested on two weeks ago at Tbilisi International Airport, in Georgia, accused of smuggling 14kg of cannabis in to the ex-Soviet country from Bangkok, Thailand. The 18-year-old has told a court she is pregnant. The next day, 21-year-old Charlotte Lee, from south London, was arrested at the international airport in Colombo, Sri Lanka. She claims the 46kg of synthetic cannabis called kush was planted in her luggage. Both deny the offences, but as two young British women languish in foreign jails facing a combined 45 years in prison, we spoke to expert Dr Jennifer Fleetwood, senior lecturer in criminology at City St George's, University of London. Her book Drug Mules: Women in the International Cocaine Trade won the British Society of Criminology Book Prize in 2015. Dr Fleetwood believes much of the public debate around drug mules is wrong and shared with us the findings from her research, interviewing drug mules and their handlers in Ecuador. Young women who are arrested grab the headlines but most drug mules are men "Most drugs mules are men but we don't tend to think about it that way. We think about women being the bodies and men being the brains. Drug trafficking is completely dominated by men and they represent 95% of the prison population. But there are more women involved as drugs mules than you would expect. "Women and men often have different ways into the role. Men are more likely to be involved through associates while women get involved through men who know them, it might be a relative or a romantic partner." Most drug mules know who they are working for "We hear people talk about how they were persuaded by someone they just met - stranger danger. But my suspicion is that people who knew what they were doing probably tend to keep their heads down and accept their sentence. Most of the time, when people get involved it is through someone they know, or somebody who knows somebody they know. "One woman I spoke to got into it through a friend. An abusive partner had left her with a huge amount of debt and she was about to lose her house. She spoke to a woman who had gone on a trip and made a lot of money." People who are coerced into it do not make the best mules "The thing people always focus on is those who are forced into getting involved. But some drugs traffickers I have spoken to tell me those are the last people they want to use as mules. They will look nervous and are more likely to get caught." Traffickers look for mules with a reason to travel "When I spoke to people who recruited drug mules, they just looked for someone who had a reason to travel. Backpackers fit the bill but so do retired people. One person I spoke to was so big that he thought people were scared to search him. "They have an idea of what customs are looking from a global south country with no reason to travel, a new passport and brand new shoes, will attract attention. A backpacker with lots of stamps in their passport is much better." Sometimes drug mules are not told what they are carrying as it is 'better for them' "Whenever people get involved in drug dealing, they are exploited. Normally, when you do a job you have an expectation of what will happen. But here none of that applies. Drug mules are misled. They might agree to carry a small item, a small amount of medicine, but they find there is a large figurine they have to carry. "They might agree to carrying cannabis but it is actually heroin. Sometimes they are not told what they are carrying. I have spoken to drug traffickers who say it is better for them that way as they won't be nervous. It is often blind belief. When they pack up the drugs it is done so that customs can't see it." The drugs business is chaotic and things go wrong "It is also a chaotic business. We think of them as criminal masterminds but the reality is very different from that. One backpacker I spoke to found they had packed up the drugs in a briefcase, the last thing she would look natural carrying." Street value figures are misleading and some mules get paid nothing at all " In the UK, street value used to be used as a measure of harm in the courts. It's not any more but police still insist on using it and it is really disingenuous. If they are being set up, they get nothing at all. If you are paying off a debt then again you are not being paid anything. "But if you do get money, it could be £2,000. It could be £8-10,000. But everyone I spoke to was arrested - that's what they were promised. I don't know if they would have got it. It's not a great deal. "In drug trafficking there are lots of people who get paid. The person who set it up, maybe a specialist who packs up the drugs. There might be someone who travels alongside them to make sure they don't disappear. Nobody gets a percentage except the investor, who might be one person or might be a collaboration of people."
Daily Mirror
24-05-2025
- Daily Mirror
'I was a drug mule - here's how traffickers pick and trick the vulnerable'
As rising numbers of Brits risk all to smuggle drugs on to planes, reformed trafficker Natalie Welsh reveals how they are at risk of being hoodwinked by organised criminal gangs A former drug mule - jailed for ten years on her first smuggling trip - has a stark warning for the rising numbers of young Brits going down the same path. Natalie Welsh said the traffickers who persuade youngsters to carry a suitcase of drugs onto an airplane are the 'best salespeople in the world '. But the picture they paint of a risk free trip is a tissue of lies designed simply to get them on that flight. In reality the drug mule is the most 'expendable' link in the lucrative international drugs trade who 'nobody cares about'. The number of Brits languishing in foreign jails on drugs charges has doubled in barely a year, new stats reveal. The charity Prisoners Abroad has seen 43 new cases in the first seven weeks of this year - almost one a day - and this is twice the rate in 2024. Bella Culley, from Teeside, was arrested on May 11 at Tbilisi International Airport, in Georgia, accused of transporting 14kg of cannabis, after flying from Bangkok. The 18-year-old has told a court she is pregnant. 21-year-old Charlotte Lee, from south London, jetted from the same Thai airport and was arrested in Colombo, Sri Lanka, the following day. She claims the 46kg of synthetic cannabis called kush was planted in her luggage. Both deny the offences. Thailand is one of the countries from where the National Crime Agency says it has seen an 'exponential' rise in smuggling attempts. Officers seized 27 tonnes of the drug at UK airports last year - up from just two tonnes in 2022. Natalie Welsh said of Bella and Charlotte: 'I just feel for them. I imagine at the moment they are not going to be accepting the reality of the situation. I read they are facing up to 20 and 25 years in prison. One is 21, the other is 18. It is just so sad. They have their whole lives ahead of them.' Speaking in general terms of others who have been guilty of smuggling, she added: 'Why are so many young people wanting to do this? Why are they so desperate for money? Are their wages not enough, is it the cost of living? Can't people afford to pay their way through university and training? Whatever the money is, it won't be much but they will be thinking it will go a long way in south east Asia. The mule takes the biggest risk and gets the lowest pay for it. Compared to what it's going to be sold for it's pennies. Everyone else is making the money. The mule is the expendable one. Nobody cares about them.' Cannabis has been decriminalised in Thailand and Natalie said: 'They will be told if you get caught here they will just take it off you. They are probably told that if it's going through transit there is nothing to worry about, it just gets taken off one plane and put on another and doesn't go through Xray machines. And they have probably been told that at the receiving end everybody has been paid off and they are expecting it. They would definitely have people telling them it's going to be fine. These are the best salespeople in the world, if they can convince somebody to take a suitcase load of drugs on a plane.' 45-year-old former one-time drugs mule Natalie was 21 and with her three-year-old daughter when she was caught at an airport in Venezuela with a suitcase with £300,000 worth of cocaine given to her by a man she had met just days earlier. She said: 'He told me that everybody knew what was going on. At the airport I would be taken to one side but not to worry, that was all part of it. They knew what was going on, they had been paid off and not to panic. So when they did come for me, my heart still went. But I just thought it was part of the plan. 'They had the suitcase open. I am telling my daughter all sorts of nonsense, keeping calm for her but actually sh***ing myself. They had taken all the stuff out on this steel table, with a single lightbulb in this cold room. It gives me the sweats just thinking about it. As soon as they pulled the knife out and went to the suitcase with the knife I knew that wasn't part of the plan and it was game over.' Her trip to South America was arranged by a London Yardie drugs gang and she thinks she was picked on because she was a crack addict and an 'easy target'. She explained: 'I had a raging drug addiction which is how I got involved with the people who recruited me. I was easily manipulated but I also accept responsibility for my own actions. Nobody put a gun to my head or forced me to make the decisions that I made. But I had no support. I was a bit of a loner. The drug had got a hold of me so quickly. I had isolated myself from my friends because I was so embarrassed and ashamed I didn't want to be around them.' She was hanging out with other addicts in Gloucester and involved in petty crime before meeting a London drugs gang who told her how she could make more money. 'I was not supposed to get the job,' she explained. 'I was supposed to be just getting some information and feeding it back to others. But when I went to meet the big man to talk about the job, I just thought what he was offering me was what these other guys wanted me to do back home. 'I thought it would be my escape from drug addiction. How an addict's mind works is just insane. 'I would get away and I would stop taking drugs and I would come back and I would be clean and I would never take the drugs again. To me it was a lot of money, but it was pennies really. It was £4,000 and I had never seen or heard of £4,000 in my life. It seemed like a huge amount of money. I was 21, I was on benefits. 10 years in prison didn't even cross my mind. I was told that it was a cert.' Natalie said she was taken to the home of an older successful drug mule who 'glamorised it'. 'She was in her late 20s, she had a nice house, nice clothes, nice things - she had everything that I didn't. She told me she had done the trip herself, she talked me through it. She did a good job on me. I was lonely and I thought she was my friend.' The gang moved fast, Natalie said: 'I was on the trip after a week. They don't want you to have time to tell people what's going on or think about what you are doing." Natalie doesn't know how many others they persuaded to make the same trip or where the gang are now. She said she wrote to the address where she had met the older mule from prison in Venezuela and they sent her £200 but she never heard from them again. Her child was sent back ton England and after four-and-a-half years in horrific jail conditions she escaped with the help of a prison guard she had formed a relationship with. After many years of struggles with her addictions, Natalie is clean but concerned about what she says is rising levels of drug addictions among the young. Natalie has written a book about her experience, called Escape from Venezuela's Deadliest Prison.
Daily Record
21-05-2025
- Daily Record
Bella Culley's dad visits pregnant 'drug smuggling' teen behind bars in Georgia
Bella Culley's dad Niel Culley has been spotted visiting his 18-year-old daughter in prison in Georgia for the first time since her arrest in May. British drug smuggling suspect Bella Culley has been reunited with her father who visited the teenager in a Georgian prison. The 18-year-old disappeared in Thailand before reappearing in Georgia, where she is now facing a potential life sentence for allegedly importing cannabis. Her father, Niel, was recently seen visiting Bella at the Women's Prison No. 5 in Rustavi, which is believed to be their first encounter since her arrest. The Briton, who has informed the court of her pregnancy, is being detained approximately 45 minutes south of Tbilisi, the capital of the former Soviet nation. This development follows the appointment of Bella's new solicitor, who has referred to the teen as "not far from childhood" and affirmed her readiness to defend herself. Niel, aged 49, was observed entering the penitentiary alone on Wednesday morning carrying a medium-sized dark blue bag. He was noticed leaving without the bag roughly 45 minutes later, indicating he may have delivered items to his daughter, reports the Mirror. Earlier in the week, a legal representative who had visited Bella mentioned that she had asked for fruit and warmer clothes. This comes after reports last week detailed Niel's distressing wait to see his daughter again. Bella had to formally request a family visit through the prison authorities. She was apprehended at Tbilisi International Airport on 11 May with approximately 12kg of cannabis and around 2kg of hashish. A conviction could result in a substantial period of incarceration, with the possibility of a life sentence in the most severe outcome. The teenager, from Billingham, Teesside, recently had her first meeting with her new family-appointed lawyer, Malkhaz Salakaia. According to reports, Mr Salakaia had to explain her geographical location to Bella during their two-hour meeting. He described her as being in "good health" but stopped short of calling her a capable adult. The lawyer stated that Bella is prepared to defend herself in court and has no complaints about her detention facility. However, when asked if he considered her a mature adult, he replied, "no", saying she seemed "not far from childhood". During their meeting, Bella reportedly provided evidence to investigators. This comes after a celebrity lawyer, Mariam Kublashvili, visited Bella at the prison on Monday, describing the British teenager as "very open" and "charming". Although not officially representing Bella, Ms Kublashvili offered her services pro bono and reported that Bella complained about not receiving adequate medical care for her pregnancy, including a lack of tests, checks, and medical examinations. Bella allegedly requested a doctor, but they didn't speak English, leading to communication difficulties. The solicitor, who once appeared on Georgia's version of Strictly and represented speedboat killer Jack Shepherd, spoke highly of Bella. Kublashvili, 39, said: "Initial impression was very positive – she is very open, very pleasant, charming. She doesn't fit a profile of [a] drug trafficker at all. For anyone with any experience in dealing with such legal cases, it would be quite obvious that she is a victim here, [that] she's been used and manipulated. I have a 20-year-old child myself and can only imagine what her parents must be feeling." She further added: "[She] Asked me if a jumper and warmer clothes (size M) could be sent to her... She wants fruits as well – doesn't like what she is fed in the prison at all... Said she would very much like to go home." Bella is due to appear in court next on July 1.
Daily Mirror
21-05-2025
- Daily Mirror
Dad of Brit jailed abroad drops off bag at prison after she gave 'shopping list'
The 18-year-old's dad, Niel, has been spotted visiting Bella at prison in what is thought to be their first meeting since her arrest this month for allegedly importing cannabis British drug smuggling suspect Bella Culley has been reunited with her dad who has visited the teen behind bars in Georgia. The 18-year-old vanished in Thailand before turning up in Georgia where she faces life in jail after allegedly importing cannabis. Now dad, Niel, has been spotted visiting Bella at prison in what is thought to be their first meeting since her arrest. The Brit – who has told a court she is pregnant – is being held at Women's Prison No.5 in Rustavi, about 45 minutes south of the ex-Soviet state's capital Tbilisi. It comes as Bella's new lawyer has described the teenager as 'not far from childhood' – and said she is ready to defend herself. Niel, 49, was seen going into the prison alone on Wednesday morning with a medium-sized dark blue blag. When he was spotted about 45 minutes later he did not have the bag – suggesting he had dropped off supplies to his daughter. A lawyer who said she visited her earlier this week said the teenager had requested fruit and warmer clothing. It comes after we reported last week how dad Niel faced an agonising wait to be reunited with her. His daughter had to write to prison authorities requesting permission for a family visit. Bella – arrested at Tbilisi International Airport on 11 May – is accused of carrying about 12kg of cannabis and around 2kg of hashish into Georgia. If found guilty, she faces a lengthy prison spell — which could be life in the worst-case scenario. Meanwhile, the teenager, from Billingham on Teesside, is said to have had her first meeting with the new family-appointed lawyer. The lawyer, Malkhaz Salakaia, reportedly said he had to explain to Bella where she was geographically. Mr Salakaia said Bella was in "good health" – but would not describe her as an adequate adult, the BBC reported. Their first meeting was said to have lasted two hours. The lawyer said his client was ready to defend herself in court, the BBC reported. Mr Salakaia said Bella does not have any complaints about the location of detention. Asked whether he would describe Bella as an adequate adult, he answered "no". His impression was that she was "not far from childhood". During the meeting, Bella was reportedly also giving evidence to investigators. On Monday, we revealed how a celebrity lawyer said she visited Bella at the prison. Mariam Kublashvili described the British teenager as 'very open' and 'charming'. The lawyer, who offered her services to Bella for free but is not representing her, said: 'She is pregnant and needs medical care which she complained she wasn't getting – there were no tests / checks or medical examinations done, she told me. She said she asked for a doctor, but the doctor wasn't speaking English and they couldn't understand each other." The lawyer, who appeared on Georgia's version of Strictly, once represented speedboat killer Jack Shepherd. Kublashvili, 39, also said of Bella: 'Initial impression was very positive – she is very open, very pleasant, charming. She doesn't fit a profile of [a] drug trafficker at all. For anyone with any experience in dealing with such legal cases, it would be quite obvious that she is a victim here, [that] she's been used and manipulated. I have a 20-year-old child myself and can only imagine what her parents must be feeling.' She added: "[She] Asked me if a jumper and warmer clothes (size M) could be sent to her… She wants fruits as well – doesn't like what she is fed in the prison at all… Said she would very much like to go home.' Bella is next expected in court on July 1.
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Yahoo
Bella Culley not an 'adequate adult', says lawyer
A British teenager held in prison in Georgia on suspicion of drug offences has been described as "not far from childhood" by her new lawyer. Bella Culley, 18, from Billingham on Teesside, has had the first meeting with her new family-appointed lawyer Malkhaz Salakaia, who said he had to explain to her where she was geographically. She is being detained for 55 days before trial while the prosecution investigates where the 12kg (26lbs) of marijuana and 2kg (4.4lbs) of hashish found in a travel bag came from, and whether she was planning on handing it over to someone else. Mr Salakaia said Miss Culley was in "good health" but he would not describe her as an adequate adult. The lawyer, who does not speak English and specialises in juvenile law, has been communicating with his client using a translator. Their first meeting lasted two hours in prison number 5, near the town of Rustavi. Mr Salakaia said his client was in good health, did not have any complaints about the place of detention and was ready to defend herself in court. When asked whether he would describe Miss Culley as an adequate adult, his answer was "no". He said he had the impression she was "not far from childhood". During their meeting, the 18-year-old was also giving evidence to Georgian investigators. Miss Culley asked for advice about what to say and on some questions she chose to remain silent. At the previous pre-trial hearing on 13 May, Miss Culley told the court she was pregnant. Georgian Police said officers had seized marijuana and the narcotic drug hashish in a travel bag at Tbilisi International Airport. The BBC understands Ms Culley arrived in Tbilisi on a flight from Sharjah, in the United Arab Emirates, on 10 May . The BBC has been told the British Embassy has advised the teenager's family not to speak to the press. Miss Culley was charged by Georgian police with illegally buying, possessing and importing large quantities of narcotics. A spokesperson said the arrest was the result of a joint operation between multiple departments and, if she was found guilty, Miss Culley could face up to 20 years in jail or life imprisonment. Follow BBC Tees on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram. Bella Culley writes letter asking to see her family British teen arrested in Georgia for drug offences What are conditions like in Bella Culley's prison?
