Latest news with #Thai-based
New York Post
a day ago
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Miss Grand International 2024 calls out pageant for 'toxicity'
She's giving up her title. Rather than receiving the royal treatment after winning a worldwide beauty pageant in 2024, Rachel Gupta claims she was treated like second-class citizen — abandoned in a 'dilapidated' house sans food, phone, money or security. 'The whole time that I was working with Miss Grand International, the last seven months, I was constantly harassed, manipulated, ignored and left to fend for myself,' a sobbing Gupta, 21, from India, revealed while virally renouncing her royal status on YouTube. 'These have been the hardest few months of my life.' 5 Rachel Gupta claims the Miss Grand International organization harassed, manipulated and abandoned her after she won the Thai-based beauty pageant in October 2024. YouTube/Rachel Gupta Deeming Miss Grand International as a breeding ground for 'toxicity and negativity,' Gupta aired out her grievances with the Thailand-based beauty pageant to over 1.4 million viewers in a 56-minute tell-all. In response, Miss Grand International has publicly revoked Gupta's crown, alleging she failed to 'fulfill her assigned duties, [engaged] in external projects without prior approval from the organization, and [refused] to participate in the scheduled trip to Guatemala.' 5 Gupta was crowned Miss Grand International 2024, believing she'd receive grand prize money, a penthouse and traveling privileges. NARONG SANGNAK/EPA-EFE / Shutterstock However, Gupta begs to differ. After being crowned queen in October, the Gen Z claims MGI executives, with a figurative 'gun to the head,' forced her to sign a 'one-sided' contract, in which she blindly agreed to comply with all of the organization's requests. But she claims the brand failed to fulfill its promises to provide her with a monthly stipend, penthouse lodging and 'basic amenities.' 5 Gupta claims she became depressed after being left to 'fend' for herself outside of MGI sanctioned events and appearances. Getty Images 'Immediately after winning, they moved me into a cramped hotel room, where all my suitcases couldn't open properly because there wasn't enough space,' Gupta carped on camera. 'Then, they shifted me to a dilapidated house which was way on the outside of the city. I had no car. They didn't give me anyway of getting around.' 'I was stuck in the house until they decided that they needed me for something.' Virtually stranded without sustenance or cooking supplies, Gupta, a vegetarian, was forced to purchase herself a Thai cellphone for ordering takeout. Surviving on nothing but fast-food negatively altered her figure, she said. 5 Gupta says she was subjected to constant body shaming by MGI executives who scrutinized her weight. NARONG SANGNAK/EPA-EFE / Shutterstock 'How am I supposed to stay healthy or take care of myself when I can't eat home cooked food? It was so bad,' the siren groaned, adding that she was also denied access to a gym and workout equipment. 'Most days I'd end up eating whatever junk I had or I would order food. But because it's so far away, the drivers would end up canceling.' She blames MGI for the struggle. 'It's their responsibility. I'm with that organization,' said Gupta, admitting that the ordeal rendered her depressed. 'They should at least make sure that they're giving their queen food to eat.' However, instead of showing concern for her well-being, she says the powers-that-be were only concerned about her changing waistline. 5 Gupta forewarned future MGI contestants that the organization 'does not care about you.' AFP via Getty Images 'They were hounding me, constantly talking about my weight and my body,' Gupta cried. 'They sent a representative to me, and he just comes up to me and starts pinching me in places and he's like, 'Oh, you need to lose weight here. You need to lose weight here.'' 'It's so embarrassing,' she wept. 'It makes you feel so small and so bad.' Gupta then explained that she'd reported a potential robbery to MGI organizers, hoping the honchos would boost security at the so-called slummy house. However, she claims her cries for help fell on deaf ears. 'I realized, in that moment, that these people will never support me,' said the tearful head-turner. 'As long as I'm there to smile at their events, keep my body super skinny the way they like — they don't care if I live or die.' 'I was completely my own.' Throughout her reign as Miss MGI, Gupta says she was barred from participating in advocacy and charity work, but bullied into selling 'cheap and tacky' products on TikTok for the pageant's financial gains. 'They are cold-hearted business people. They just want to extract your use, make money off of you and that it is,' Gupta asserted. 'The other thing they care about is how you look,' she continued, accusing company higher-ups of spewing, 'body-shaming, disgusting, deplorable comments,' about their competitors. 'It made me feel sick,' said Gupta. 'I was ready to throw up.' In MGI's official statement, shared to Instagram on May 28, the organization directly responded to each of their ex-star's allegations. It also asked that its crown be returned to headquarters 'within 30 days.' Gupta is among a growing number of beauty pageant titleholders who've recently sashayed away from the winner's sash. Both Miss USA and Miss Teen USA 2024 stepped down from their respective positions due to alleged 'bullying' by the organization's CEO. The Miss Teen USA runner up, too, turned down the honor amid the chaos. Gupta hopes other pageant queen wannabes think twice before signing up for a potential setup. 'Even if you win, you'll be completely on your own,' she warned. 'You will not get any love or special of treatment or support from this organization.' 'The Miss Grand International organization [does not] care about you.'
The Hindu
27-05-2025
- Business
- The Hindu
Royal Thai Consulate General visits Sri City
Racha Aribarg, Consul General of Royal Thai Consulate General, Chennai, visited Sri City industrial zone on Tuesday and explored ways to enhance business ties between the two nations. Accompanied by his spouse Naraphan Aribarg and consul Pinpong Chauvachata, Mr. Aribarg, who is on a two-day tour, arrived to a rousing reception by Sri City President (Operations) Satish Kamat. Highlighting the presence of Thai-based Rockworth Industries in Sri City, Bodgan George, Assistant Vice-President (Business Development) provided an overview of the integrated business city's key features, emphasising on the top-notch infrastructure, dynamic industrial environment and strategic advantages for businesses. Reacting on the visit, Sri City Founder Managing Director Ravindra Sannareddy hoped that the visit of the Consul General would inspire more Thai companies to consider India as an investment destination and described Sri City as a reflection of the country's dynamic industrial ecosystem. The Consul General toured various business zones, discussed the Sir City's planning framework, investment incentives and operational advantages. The entourage had visits planned to the manufacturing units of Rockworth, Mondelez, Blue Star and Murugappa group.
Yahoo
25-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
From teenage Arsenal prodigy to convicted drug smuggler
As a footballer, Jay Emmanuel-Thomas seemed destined for greatness. But a drug-smuggling conviction has left his career and reputation in tatters. How did things unravel so dramatically for a player once tipped for the top? Hailed by legendary Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger as a footballer who could "play anywhere", Emmanuel-Thomas was marked out early on as having elite potential. Imposing, technically gifted and surprisingly agile, the striker appeared to have the world at his feet. But a career that promised so much at Arsenal faltered and saw him spend years flitting between the second and third tiers of English football. In 2020 he moved to play in Scotland and was still plying his trade north of the border when, on 18 September, he was arrested at his home in Gourock, near Glasgow. Sixteen days earlier, Border Force officers had stopped two women at London Stansted Airport and found drugs in their cases. It was not a minor haul; they were staring at cannabis with a street value of £600,000. How did it get there? The evidence soon led detectives to Emmanuel-Thomas. Wind back a decade and a half, and things were very different. It is 26 May 2009, and Arsenal's latest batch of academy talents can barely contain their excitement. The young prospects, including Jack Wilshere and Francis Coquelin, have just won the FA Youth Cup. One player in particular has stood out: their 16-year-old captain, Emmanuel-Thomas, who has scored in every round of the competition. "These young men have a very bright future indeed," remarked one commentator. But despite going on to make five first-team appearances, it was not quite to be for Emmanuel-Thomas. He was shipped out on several loans before leaving the north London club for Ipswich Town. It was a move that excited supporters in Suffolk, who were keen to see what the former Arsenal starlet could produce. However, 71 games and eight goals later, Emmanuel-Thomas had not quite made the mark fans hoped for, and he moved to Bristol City in a player exchange deal. Here, he helped the Robins secure promotion to the Championship and became something of a cult hero, scoring 21 goals in his first season. A move to Queens Park Rangers followed, with subsequent loan spells at MK Dons and Gillingham. But in 2019, Emmanuel-Thomas accepted a transfer to a Thai-based team that would alter the course of his life. It is believed he was tempted into the country's drugs underworld while playing for PTT Rayong, a club that folded in the same year. Despite later moves to an Indian side and several Scottish outfits, including Aberdeen, Emmanuel-Thomas never shook off the criminal connections he made. By the time he took a six-month contract at Greenock Morton, a 40-minute drive from Glasgow, the game was almost up. As he lined up for them against Queens Park on 14 September, he would have surely known the law was about to catch up with him. The women arrested at Stansted were his 33-year-old girlfriend, Yasmin Piotrowska, and her friend Rosie Rowland, 28. Emmanuel Thomas, by then 33, appeared in court charged with orchestrating the attempted importation of drugs, and was sacked by his club. Detectives discovered he had duped Ms Piotrowska, from north-west London, and Ms Rowland, from Chelmsford, into travelling to Thailand with the promise of £2,500 in cash and an all-expenses-paid trip. Their job? To bring home two suitcases each, filled with what they were assured was gold, Chelmsford Crown Court heard. They flew business class from Bangkok, landing in Essex via Dubai. Unknown to them, they were smuggling in cannabis with a street value of £600,000, vacuum-packed inside the four cases. The pair were stopped and arrested by Border Force officers, before being charged with drug importation offences. With the pair in custody, and Emmanuel-Thomas later remanded, police probed how the drugs made it to the UK. They soon found the player was the intermediary between suppliers in Thailand and dealers in the UK, according to the National Crime Agency (NCA). With the footballer's encouragement, the women had also made a near-identical trip in July, having been made similar promises of cash and a lavish holiday. On his way to custody, Emmanuel-Thomas even told NCA officers: "I just feel sorry for the girls." His first court hearing in September was told he carried out "extensive research" into flights and directions, including which airports the women had been going to. David Philips, a senior NCA investigator, said "organised criminals like Emmanuel-Thomas" used persuasion and payment to get people to do their dirty work. "But the risk of getting caught is very high and it simply isn't worth it," he added. During several court appearances, Emmanuel-Thomas, of Cardwell Road, Gourock, strenuously denied attempting to import cannabis. However, he changed his plea to guilty at the start of May and restrictions on reporting this were lifted on Wednesday. Charges against both Ms Piotrowska and Ms Rowland were dropped after the prosecution revealed they had been tricked by Emmanuel-Thomas. It followed what David Josse KC described as a "very thorough investigation". Emmanuel-Thomas appeared via video link from HMP Chelmsford at his latest court hearing. When he returns to court for sentencing, on a date still to be confirmed, it will not be his first time in the spotlight. But it will be for very different reasons to the day he lifted that trophy aloft in 2009. Follow East of England news on X, Instagram and Facebook: BBC Beds, Herts & Bucks, BBC Cambridgeshire, BBC Essex, BBC Norfolk, BBC Northamptonshire or BBC Suffolk. Footballer admits plot to smuggle £600k of cannabis Footballer denies plot to smuggle £600k cannabis Footballer sacked after £600,000 cannabis smuggling charge HM Courts and Tribunals Service National Crime Agency
Scottish Sun
21-05-2025
- Scottish Sun
I'm a drug mule who flew from Thailand like Bella Culley & Charlotte May Lee…I've fled UK over threat to kill my family
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) A TERRIFIED British drug mule has told how he was left in fear of his life after his stash went missing en route to the UK - and the gang which recruited him demanded £100,000. The 32-year-old man partied for free in Thailand with traffickers who promised him £12,000 to carry a suitcase stuffed with 42lbs of cannabis to the UK via Dubai. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 16 The 32-year-old Brit smuggler did not want to be identified for his own safety Credit: Getty 16 British drugs suspect Bella May Culley, 18, from Billingham, County Durham, detained in Tbilisi, Georgia. Credit: East2West 16 Charlotte May Lee pictured in Bangkok, Thailand before being arrested in Sri Lanka 16 A stash of the synthetic cannabinoid, Kush, worth £1.2million was allegedly found on Charlotte May Lee Credit: Police Handout But he was horrified to learn his illicit cargo had not been loaded onto the plane from Bangkok after he boarded and his suitcase was later seized by border forces. He managed to reach the UK where he immediately smashed and threw away the burner phone he had been using to contact the gang to stop cops tracking him down. But the traffickers who recruited him are now threatening to kill him or harm his family unless he hands over the £100,000 value of their lost weed. The mule narrowly escaped arrest on a similar route to Bella Culley - the 18-year-old Brit banged up for alleged trafficking in Georgia. He lives a few miles from Bella's home in Billington, County Durham, but has been forced to flee the country to Spain after the gang started hunting him. The trafficker - whose story has been verified and has asked not be identified for his own safety - told The Sun: "I got messages from the gang accusing me of stealing the weed when it went missing. "They were saying 'we want the stuff back or you'll owe us £100,000'. They said they know where my family live and were threatening to firebomb the house. "I have no idea who they are or where they're from. These are just people working through encrypted apps. "I couldn't give them an answer where the drugs were because I had no idea myself." The mule laid bare his terror as law enforcement authorities warned Thai-based British gangs are offering free holidays, limitless booze and big cash bungs to vulnerable holiday youngsters. Brit 'drug smuggler' Bella Culley 'starving' in ex-Soviet hell prison - as she reveals pregnancy craving to celeb lawyer The Sun told yesterday how narcotics crimelords based in hot spots including Thailand's Koh Samui are offering bigger rewards than ever after profit margins rocketed. Since cannabis was legalised in Thailand in 2018 it has become so cheap on the streets that gangs who export to the UK can make an astonishing 3,000 per cent mark-up. An incredible 800 people - including 50 Britons - have been held in Thailand for alleged drug smuggling since last July, with more than nine tons of cannabis seized. Desperate Brits are being ensnared into smuggling huge quantities of drugs out of Thailand - with the promise of fast money but the risk of jail or death. 16 Bella appeared in court in Tbilisi, Georgia last week Credit: East2West 16 She was stopped in Georgia with 13kg of weed and hash Credit: East2West 16 Sri Lankan authorities say the found this stash of drugs in Charlotte May Lee's luggage Credit: Police Handout The mule told yesterday how gang recruiters have been active in poor communities in the north east of England preying on young people in need of cash. He said: "Ordinary people are being offered a lot of money to do this. 'I know loads of people who've done it - and there's a handful from my home town who are in jail right now. "I got approached by someone who I used to be friends with on the street who knew I was hard up for money. 16 "He said to me 'do you want to make yourself 12 grand?' I was like, 'yeah, doing what?' "He was said I'd have to fly out to Thailand, pick up some weed and bring it back. "Obviously, at first I was like, 'nah, f*** that!' And then, money started getting on top of me a bit more over the next couple of months. "So, I got in contact with him, and he said 'right, yeah, we can go next week'. "I don't have a clue who organised it but they booked our flights.' The mule and two other couriers - one in their mid-20s and another in his mid-30s - flew out from the North West of England to Bangkok in November. They partied for two weeks in the Thai capital fr free before being sent on their perilous mission. 16 Prisoners can be subjected to awful conditions in Sri Lankan jails 16 Bella is being held in an ex-Soviet jail in Tbilisi called Penitentiary No 5 Credit: . 16 Charlotte has hit out at the horror conditions of the prison she is being kept in The mule told The Sun: "We went to a warehouse near Pattaya and picked up a couple of suitcases - with 19 kilos of weed inside" "No questions asked - we headed straight to the airport." But the trip home took a disastrous turn when the smuggler was told his bags of contraband had not made the flight to London. He said: "When I was on the flight to Dubai, a steward told me my bags weren't on the plane. 16 'I panicked. I thought, 'S***, what the f*** does this mean?' I was thinking if I get lifted in Dubai, I'm f****d. 'They told me the hold had been full and the bags were on a different flight. "It dawned on me how much trouble I was in once I got on the plane. "I was throwing sleeping tablets down my throat just to get me through the flight. "Once I changed in Dubai, I kind of sobered up and really started to panic.' Back in the UK, the trafficker asked for his missing bags to be delivered to a British address. 16 Bellashowed off huge wads of cash in social media videos before her arrest Credit: @ 16 She posted videos of her smoking in the back of cars on her travels Credit: @ / tiktok But they never arrived and a baggage agent later sent him a message confirming Border Force had seized his suitcase and its illicit contents. He said: "At that point, I got rid of my phone and just f*** off to go and stay with a friend in another part of the country for a little bit. I was waiting for the police to turn up and get me. "I snapped the phone I'd been using into a million pieces and threw into different parts of the river. "I wasn't going to go chasing it up after I'd received an email saying that they'd been seized. I panicked and tried to disappear. "Then the guys who I was doing it for started accusing me of stealing it, telling me I owed them 100 grand and threatening my family. 'It got really nasty after that and ended up disappearing to Spain for while until things cooled down.' "I don't think they're going to risk their whole operation over something this small - but now I'm worrie about my family.' 16 Charlotte was arrested in Sri Lanka within hours of Bella being nicked in Georgia Credit: Instagram 16 Charlotte formerly worked as an air stewardess Credit: Tim Stewart Police in the former Soviet state of Georgia believe Bella used in a similar operation - but routed through capital Tbilisi to provide a back door into the EU. Former air stewardess Charlotte May Lee, 21, from Chipstead in Surrey appeared in court yesterday after being up in another suspected Thai trafficking nightmare. She appeared brought to court yesterday from a disgusting hellhole cell in Sri Lanka following her arrest with a huge stash of the superstrong drug kush. A second source in the north east of England told The Sun how social media is also being used to entice would-be smugglers. They said: "People are being offered around £10,000 to go to Thailand, pick up a load of weed, and come back. There's loads doing it from around here. "I know a mate who was picking up cannabis from a guy and got offered £10k. 'He was told that he'd have to bring back 22kg of weed. He told them straight up he wasn't interested, but there are other people who will do anything for that kind of cash. Why Brit backpackers are prime targets, Thai cop reveals By Patrick Harrington Police Lieutenant Colonel Arun Musikim, Deputy Inspector of the Surat Thani province police force, said: 'Cases involving British nationals smuggling cannabis have been around for a while. 'There is a lot of cannabis grown on Thailand's islands in the south because the climate is suitable and it is legal. A lot of gangs are attracted to this. 'There are now various smuggling methods that we have seen. Some carry it themselves, some hire backpackers, and some send it via mail. 'This year, there have been many cases we have intercepted. Most involve British and Malaysian nationals. 'It's easy for British citizens to travel as they can enter Thailand and return to the UK without needing a visa. 'Most of the smugglers are people hired to carry the cannabis, similar to how tourists might smuggle tax-free goods. 'They're usually unemployed individuals from the UK. The gangs offer them flights, pocket money and hotel stays, just to come and travel and take a bag back home with them. 'These people often have poor social standing at home and are looking for ways to earn quick money. They find them through friends or on social media. 'Many will go to festivals or parties while they are here, just like they are having a normal trip abroad. 'They are told that it is easy and they will not be caught. Then the amount the organisers can sell the cannabis for in the UK is much higher than it costs in Thailand. 'Police suspect that there are multiple employers and groups receiving the drugs on the other end. The cannabis then enters the UK market. 'We are being vigilant to ensure there are no routes out of the country.' "I reckon they sent Bella to Georgia because security's less tight. 'It's in Europe, but not in the EU — so you can get into Georgia, then slip into mainland Europe where border checks are easier. "Moldova's another one." Meanwhile, Bella Culley's anguished dad Niel (Ckd), 49, was allowed to visit her for the first time yesterday since her arrest at Tbilisi's international airport on May 11. He is believed to have ferried a food and clothing package to Bella at the grim No5 Women's Penitentiary where she will be held until her next court appearance on July 1. He spent around 45 minutes with Bella before emerging puffing nervously on a cigarette as he waited for a taxi. He declined to comment.
The Irish Sun
21-05-2025
- The Irish Sun
I'm a drug mule who flew from Thailand like Bella Culley & Charlotte May Lee…I've fled UK over threat to kill my family
A TERRIFIED British drug mule has told how he was left in fear of his life after his stash went missing en route to the UK - and the gang which recruited him demanded £100,000. The 32-year-old man partied for free in Thailand with traffickers who promised him £12,000 to carry a suitcase stuffed with 42lbs of cannabis to the UK via Dubai. 16 The 32-year-old Brit smuggler did not want to be identified for his own safety Credit: Getty 16 British drugs suspect Bella May Culley, 18, from Billingham, County Durham, detained in Tbilisi, Georgia. Credit: East2West 16 Charlotte May Lee pictured in Bangkok, Thailand before being arrested in Sri Lanka 16 A stash of the synthetic cannabinoid, Kush, worth £1.2million was allegedly found on Charlotte May Lee Credit: Police Handout But he was horrified to learn his illicit cargo had not been loaded onto the plane from Bangkok after he boarded and his suitcase was later seized by border forces. He managed to reach the UK where he immediately smashed and threw away the burner phone he had been using to contact the gang to stop cops tracking him down. But the traffickers who recruited him are now threatening to kill him or harm his family unless he hands over the £100,000 value of their lost weed. The mule narrowly escaped arrest on a read more on the 'smugglers' He lives a few miles from Bella's home in Billington, County Durham, but has been forced to flee the country to Spain after the gang started hunting him. The trafficker - whose story has been verified and has asked not be identified for his own safety - told The Sun: "I got messages from the gang accusing me of stealing the weed when it went missing. "They were saying 'we want the stuff back or you'll owe us £100,000'. They said they know where my family live and were threatening to firebomb the house. "I have no idea who they are or where they're from. These are just people working through encrypted apps. Most read in The Sun "I couldn't give them an answer where the drugs were because I had no idea myself." The mule laid bare his terror as law enforcement authorities warned Thai-based British gangs are offering free holidays, limitless booze and big cash bungs to vulnerable holiday youngsters. Brit 'drug smuggler' Bella Culley 'starving' in ex-Soviet hell prison - as she reveals pregnancy craving to celeb lawyer The Sun told yesterday how narcotics crimelords based in hot spots including Thailand's Koh Samui are offering bigger rewards than ever after profit margins rocketed. Since cannabis was legalised in Thailand in 2018 it has become so cheap on the streets that gangs who export to the UK can make an astonishing 3,000 per cent mark-up. An incredible 800 people - including 50 Britons - have been held in Thailand for Desperate Brits are being ensnared into 16 Bella appeared in court in Tbilisi, Georgia last week Credit: East2West 16 She was stopped in Georgia with 13kg of weed and hash Credit: East2West 16 Sri Lankan authorities say the found this stash of drugs in Charlotte May Lee's luggage Credit: Police Handout The mule told yesterday how gang recruiters have been active in poor communities in the north east of England preying on young people in need of cash. He said: "Ordinary people are being offered a lot of money to do this. 'I know loads of people who've done it - and there's a handful from my home town who are in jail right now. "I got approached by someone who I used to be friends with on the street who knew I was hard up for money. 16 "He said to me 'do you want to make yourself 12 grand?' I was like, 'yeah, doing what?' "He was said I'd have to fly out to Thailand, pick up some weed and bring it back. "Obviously, at first I was like, 'nah, f*** that!' And then, money started getting on top of me a bit more over the next couple of months. "So, I got in contact with him, and he said 'right, yeah, we can go next week'. "I don't have a clue who organised it but they booked our flights.' The mule and two other couriers - one in their mid-20s and another in his mid-30s - flew out from the North West of England to Bangkok in November. They partied for two weeks in the Thai capital fr free before being sent on their perilous mission. 16 Prisoners can be subjected to awful conditions in Sri Lankan jails 16 Bella is being held in an ex-Soviet jail in Tbilisi called Penitentiary No 5 Credit: . 16 Charlotte has hit out at the horror conditions of the prison she is being kept in The mule told The Sun: "We went to a warehouse near Pattaya and picked up a couple of suitcases - with 19 kilos of weed inside" "No questions asked - we headed straight to the airport." But the trip home took a disastrous turn when the smuggler was told his bags of contraband had not made the flight to London. He said: "When I was on the flight to Dubai, a steward told me my bags weren't on the plane. 16 'I panicked. I thought, 'S***, what the f*** does this mean?' I was thinking if I get lifted in Dubai, I'm f****d. 'They told me the hold had been full and the bags were on a different flight. "It dawned on me how much trouble I was in once I got on the plane. "I was throwing sleeping tablets down my throat just to get me through the flight. "Once I changed in Dubai, I kind of sobered up and really started to panic.' Back in the UK, the trafficker asked for his missing bags to be delivered to a British address. 16 Bellashowed off huge wads of cash in social media videos before her arrest Credit: @ 16 She posted videos of her smoking in the back of cars on her travels Credit: @ / tiktok But they never arrived and a baggage agent later sent him a message confirming Border Force had seized his suitcase and its illicit contents. He said: "At that point, I got rid of my phone and just f*** off to go and stay with a friend in another part of the country for a little bit. I was waiting for the police to turn up and get me. "I snapped the phone I'd been using into a million pieces and threw into different parts of the river. "I wasn't going to go chasing it up after I'd received an email saying that they'd been seized. I panicked and tried to disappear. "Then the guys who I was doing it for started accusing me of stealing it, telling me I owed them 100 grand and threatening my family. 'It got really nasty after that and ended up disappearing to Spain for while until things cooled down.' "I don't think they're going to risk their whole operation over something this small - but now I'm worrie about my family.' 16 Charlotte was arrested in Sri Lanka within hours of Bella being nicked in Georgia Credit: Instagram 16 Charlotte formerly worked as an air stewardess Credit: Tim Stewart Police in the former Soviet state of Georgia believe Bella used in a similar operation - but routed through capital Tbilisi to provide a back door into the EU. Former air stewardess Charlotte May Lee, 21, from Chipstead in Surrey appeared in court yesterday after being up in another suspected Thai trafficking nightmare. She appeared brought to court yesterday from a disgusting hellhole cell in Sri Lanka following her arrest with a huge stash of the superstrong drug kush. A second source in the north east of England told The Sun how social media is also being used to entice would-be smugglers. They said: "People are being offered around £10,000 to go to Thailand, pick up a load of weed, and come back. There's loads doing it from around here. "I know a mate who was picking up cannabis from a guy and got offered £10k. 'He was told that he'd have to bring back 22kg of weed. He told them straight up he wasn't interested, but there are other people who will do anything for that kind of cash. Why Brit backpackers are prime targets, Thai cop reveals By Patrick Harrington Police Lieutenant Colonel Arun Musikim, Deputy Inspector of the Surat Thani province police force, said: 'Cases involving British nationals smuggling cannabis have been around for a while. 'There is a lot of cannabis grown on Thailand's islands in the south because the climate is suitable and it is legal. A lot of gangs are attracted to this. 'There are now various smuggling methods that we have seen. Some carry it themselves, some hire backpackers, and some send it via mail. 'This year, there have been many cases we have intercepted. Most involve British and Malaysian nationals. 'It's easy for British citizens to travel as they can enter Thailand and return to the UK without needing a visa. 'Most of the smugglers are people hired to carry the cannabis, similar to how tourists might smuggle tax-free goods. 'They're usually unemployed individuals from the UK. The gangs offer them flights, pocket money and hotel stays, just to come and travel and take a bag back home with them. 'These people often have poor social standing at home and are looking for ways to earn quick money. They find them through friends or on social media. 'Many will go to festivals or parties while they are here, just like they are having a normal trip abroad. 'They are told that it is easy and they will not be caught. Then the amount the organisers can sell the cannabis for in the UK is much higher than it costs in Thailand. 'Police suspect that there are multiple employers and groups receiving the drugs on the other end. The cannabis then enters the UK market. 'We are being vigilant to ensure there are no routes out of the country.' "I reckon they sent Bella to Georgia because security's less tight. 'It's in Europe, but not in the EU — so you can get into Georgia, then slip into mainland Europe where border checks are easier. "Moldova's another one." Meanwhile, Bella Culley's anguished dad Niel (Ckd), 49, was allowed to visit her for the first time yesterday since her arrest at Tbilisi's international airport on May 11. He is believed to have ferried a food and clothing package to Bella at the grim No5 Women's Penitentiary where she will be held until her next court appearance on July 1. He spent around 45 minutes with Bella before emerging puffing nervously on a cigarette as he waited for a taxi. He declined to comment.
