Three Britons who were arrested in Bali over an alleged plot to smuggle £300,000 of cocaine have appeared in court.
Couple Jon Collyer, 38, and Lisa Stocker, 39, were arrested at Bali’s international airport in February after being caught with 994g of cocaine stashed inside sachets of Angel Delight powdered dessert mix, according to Balinese authorities.
They appeared in court in Bali today alongside Phineas Float, 31, who was allegedly due to receive the packages and was arrested a few days later.
All three defendants, who are from Hastings and St Leonards-on-Sea in East Sussex, could face the death penalty if convicted of serious drugs charges.
Convicted drug traffickers, especially those caught with large quantities, have in the past been executed by firing squad in Indonesia – including foreign nationals.
If the quantity is large but not enough for the death penalty, life in prison is a common sentence.
Sheiny Pangkahila, the lawyer representing the three British defendants, suggested in February that if convicted, her clients could each face prison sentences between 15 to 20 years.
It was reported last week that a verdict in the trial is not expected until a later date.
Jon Collyer, 38, was pictured with his arm around his partner Lisa Stocker, 39, in court today. Pictured right is their co-defendant Phineas Float
Ms Stocker, thought to be a mother-of-three, covered her face with a mask before entering the court
Mr Collyer appeared to support his partner during the court appearance in Denpasar, Bali
Outside court, Mr Collyer pulled a grey cap down over his face in front of the cameras
Mr Float was seen carrying a plastic bag and wearing dark sunglasses as he was led into court
The trio were led into court today handcuffed to prison guards, each wearing red prison vests and white shirts.
Ms Stocker, thought to be a mother-of-three, covered her face with a mask before entering the court.
Mr Collyer pulled a grey cap down over his face in front of the cameras while Mr Float wore dark sunglasses.
The group had their handcuffs removed as they sat down in court. Collyer was pictured putting his arm around Stocker as they stared blankly ahead.
Speaking to the Mail last week, family and friends of the three Britons wept as they spoke of their ‘horror’ at learning of the arrests and the penalty their loved ones could face.
Jon’s father Julian Collyer said: ‘I’m in deep shock, to be honest. I’m very, very worried as any father or parent would be. I’m concerned about the court case and just very worried.’
The retired graphic designer, who lives in Rye, East Sussex, said he had spoken to his son from prison in Bali but it was the first time in three weeks they had spoken.
One of Stocker’s family members, who would not be identified, cried as she told of her fear for her relative.
She said: ‘She’s just a mum. Her kids are going to be desperate without her. It doesn’t bear thinking about. I’m so shocked and I can’t sleep at night for thinking what might happen to her.’
At one point during the trial they removed their red prison vests
The group were pictured listening to a judge during their court appearance today
The narcotics were alleged discovered inside sealed blue plastic ‘Angel Delight’ sachets in Jon Collyer and Lisa Stocker’s luggage. Pictured: a stock photo of a packet of Angel Delight
British couple Lisa Stocker, 39, and Jon Collyer, 37, are facing decades in jail for allegedly smuggling cocaine into Bali by disguising it as Angel Delight
Sobbing, she continued: ‘There are some seriously evil people in this world who take advantage of people less fortunate and I think that’s what has happened here. I’m in bits. I can’t say any more.’
Jon’s friend Dean, 39, said: ‘I’m still in total shock. I didn’t even know he and Lisa had gone to Bali. It’s an absolute mess and I’m really worried about them both.
‘Lisa has got kids, three I think, and what are they going to do if their mum is banged up. I was horrified when I heard about it. It’s a nightmare. I can’t believe they’d be so stupid to do something like that and I hope they’re released soon.’
It is understood Balinese officers halted the couple at the X-ray machine after finding ‘suspicious’ items in their suitcases.
They were pulled to a separate area, where staff found the narcotics sealed in blue plastic ‘Angel Delight’ sachets in Collyer’s luggage.
More cocaine was found in seven plastic bags in his partner’s suitcase.
The defendants had their handcuffs removed as they arrived in court and sat down on benches
All three defendants, who are from Hastings and St Leonards-on-Sea in East Sussex, could face the death penalty if convicted
It is alleged that Mr Collyer and Ms Stocker were caught with 17 packages of cocaine in total, with a value of £296,000.
Angel Delight is a powdered dessert mixture that was popular in the 1960s and 70s.
A former neighbour and friend of the Stocker family said: ‘I can’t believe it. I’m in shock. Gosh, I feel for the family. They were my neighbours for many years and they were nice.’
Jeannie, who would not give her surname, said: ‘They were a big family but we got on well. Lisa was nice. I can’t believe they’d be involved in something like this.’
The heaviest punishment for taking part in a drug transaction is the death penalty under Indonesian law.
However, the Indonesian government has paused the death penalty since 2017 and the country’s president Prabowo Subianto has in recent months repatriated several high-profile foreign nationals convicted of drug offences back to their home countries.
Frenchman Serge Atlaoui returned to France in February after Jakarta and Paris agreed a deal to repatriate him on ‘humanitarian grounds’ because he was ill.
In December, Indonesia took Filipino national Mary Jane Veloso off death row and returned her to the Philippines.
It also sent the five remaining members of the ‘Bali Nine’ drug ring, who were serving heavy prison sentences, back to Australia.
According to Indonesia’s Ministry of Immigration and Corrections, 96 foreigners were on death row, all on drug charges, before Veloso’s release.
Collyer, Stocker and Float are only three of numerous Brits detained overseas on drug charges.
Last month a British former flight attendant was accused of smuggling £1.2 million of super-strength cannabis into Sri Lanka.
Charlotte May Lee, 21, from Coulsdon, south London, was arrested in Colombo after police discovered 46 kg of ‘Kush’ – a synthetic strain of cannabis – in her suitcase.
She had just arrived in the Sri Lankan capital on a flight from Bangkok in Thailand. She was arrested at Bandaranaike Airport and taken into custody on Monday, May 11.
She is facing up to 25 years locked in a hellhole Sri Lankan jail – but she has insisted she has been set up.
Bella Culley (pictured) is languishing in Georgia’s notorious Women’s Penitentiary Number Five alongside double murderer Magda Papidze, 35
Culley (pictured) could face a life sentence if convicted after she allegedly tried to smuggle 14kg of cannabis into the Black Sea nation
Flame-haired Papidze (pictured) is the only current inmate serving a full life sentence after smashing her husband Omar Kaphiashvili to death with a sledgehammer as he slept after strangling their five-year-old son, Tornike
Pictured: The foreboding exterior of Tbilisi’s Women’s Penitentiary Number Five, where Culley is being held
All the cells in the Georgian prison were said to have smelled ‘strongly of human sweat, human excrement, and cigarette smoke,’ according to a 2006 report
MailOnline spoke to her from her cell where she admitted that she had not been eating because the food was too spicy.
She was arrested on the same day as a British teenager was arrested in the Georgian capital of Tbilisi after allegedly arriving from Thailand carrying 14kg of cannabis in her luggage.
Bella May Culley, 18, is now facing life in prison in the former Soviet country after being accused of illegally buying, possessing and importing large quantities of narcotics.
The youngster from Billingham, Country Durham, was believed to have gone missing in Thailand before she was detained 3,700 miles away at Tbilisi International Airport.
Concerns had been raised that the two cases were related as both young women left Bangkok airport on the same day and were arrested in Sri Lanka and Georgia respectively within hours of each other.
But Ms Lee told MailOnline she did not know Ms Culley, who has been remanded in custody until her next appearance on July 1.
The UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) has confirmed it is ‘providing consular support to three British nationals detained in Indonesia and are in contact with the local authorities.’
