Teen drug mule suspect Bella Culley has claimed she was ‘forced under torture’ to smuggle drugs from Thailand to Georgia as she speaks for the first time of her ordeal at court.
The British 18-year-old claimed she has a ‘scar’ that proves she was violently coerced into trafficking the narcotics and has no idea what country she is even in.
Breaking down in tears throughout a 30-minute hearing at Tbilisi City Court in the Georgian capital, she told a judge: ‘I didn’t want to do this, I was forced under torture.
‘I just wanted to travel, I just want to live with my family, I am a loving person, I am studying at the university to become a nurse.
‘All I wanted to do is travel, but bad things happened. I don’t do drugs, as you can see in my blood tests I am clean. I always wanted to make my family proud. Thank you.’
She appeared distressed as she entered court in a pink jumper with her hair tied in a bun.
Bella’s father Niel (Corr) Culley, 49, and auntie Kerrie Culley, 51, were seen inside as well as her grandfather, while her mother appeared via video-link.
They offered £13,500 to grant her bail but it was denied.
Teen drug mule suspect Bella Culley appeared in court today, where she claimed she was ‘forced under torture’ to smuggle drugs from Thailand to Georgia. Pictured: Bella Culley at a court in Tbilisi on Tuesday
The 18-year-old claimed she had a scar that proves she was violently coerced into trafficking the narcotics
The teen, pictured, could face between 15 and 20 years behind bars
She has been charged with purchasing 446g of tetraphenol cannabinol and 11.2kg of cannabis abroad and bringing it into Georgia on May 10.
Prosecutor David Mestvirishvili said she faces a sentence of between eight and 20 years for the first charge and between 15 and 20 years.
A third charge carries a maximum six year sentence.
Judge Lela Kalichenkowas denied Culley bail after agreeing with prosecutors that the teenager is a flight risk and could commit the crime again.
Malkhaz Alakaia, defending, argued she should be granted bail and claimed she tried to show police a ‘long snake like’ scar on her arm when she was transiting as evidence she had been coerced.
He said she arrived in Thailand with just £70 to her name and has since become pregnant – describing the unborn child, whose father is also British, as ‘a labour of love’.
Mr Alakaia said: ‘You’ll see her actual involvement with these charges in her own testimony that is coming shortly. She is innocent.
‘Her emotional state exactly confirms that she was forced, I want to ask her to show the court her arm and you can see the burning scar, this scar occurred before she was ‘equipped’ with her carriage, that she never even touched.
Pictured: Bella May Culley seen in court in Tbilisi in May after she was detained at the city’s airport on suspicion of carrying cannabis
Culley was arrested upon arriving in Georgia in May. Image shows Culley being escorted by a police officer following her arrest in Tbilisi airport
Culley entered a not guilty plea and the trial date was set for July 10
The teen had been travelling in Asia prior to her arrest
Pictured: The alleged drug-filled suitcase of Culley
Pictured: Bella’s father Niel Culley and his sister Kerrie Culley (Bella’s aunt) pictured in Tbilisi following her arrest in May
Bella May Culley’s lawyer Malkhaz Alakaia pictured outside court
‘From Thailand to Sharja, from Sharja to Thailand, this baggage was carried by a different person. She was only given a passport and told you go there and there.
‘She tried to inform the passport control but was paid no attention. She even has no idea geographically where she is, she thought Tbilisi was a country.
‘She was given a photo and was told to keep and that she would be approached by certain people. This meeting didn’t happen because she was detained.’
Culley entered a not guilty plea and the trial date was set for July 10.
The teen was stopped at Tbilisi airport back in May in a suspected sting operation and was found with cannabis and hashish with a street value of £200,000.
The huge haul of drugs was found in her hold luggage, while her carry-on bag only had clothes in it. She was flying into the country on a plane from Sharjah in the UAE.
Pictured: A bikini-clad Bella with a cannabis joint in her mouth
Culley (pictured) is languishing in notorious Women’s Penitentiary Number Five
Prior to her arrest, Culley sparked a massive international search operation after she was reported missing while she was believed to be holidaying in Thailand.
She claimed in court she was pregnant and her lawyer said she had been left ‘scared, confused and depressed’.
Her lawyer also described how the teen broke down on being told she could face life behind bars if convicted.
Culley is languishing in notorious Women’s Colony Number 5 on the outskirts of Tbilisi, and could be facing 20 years in prison.
