The mother of a pregnant British teen on trial for drug smuggling charges in Georgia tearfully told her ‘I love you’ as her daughter appeared in court on Thursday.
Bella Culley, 19, from Billingham, Teeside, appeared in Tbilisi City Court today, where she was seen exchanging looks with her mother.
‘I’ll come and see you tomorrow, I love you’, her mother said as she left the courtroom after the hearing was adjourned for several weeks.
During today’s session, which only lasted about 30 minutes, Culley told the court that she hopes they will be able to ‘see my story through my eyes’, adding how ‘I never thought that something like that would happen to me.’
The teen was stopped at Tbilisi airport back in May in a suspected sting operation and was found with drugs with a six-figure street value.
The huge haul was found in the then-18-year-old’s suticase. She was flying into the country on a plane from Sharjah in the UAE.
Prior to her arrest in the Georgian capital, Culley sparked a massive international search operation after she was reported missing while she was believed to be holidaying in Thailand.
She was charged with purchasing 446g of tetraphenol cannabinol and 11.2kg of cannabis abroad.
The teen, from Billingham Teesside, was stopped at Tbilisi airport back in May and was found with drugs with a six-figure street value
Bella Culley’s mother pictured today outside Tbilisi City Court
Culley’s tearful mother told her daughter she loved her as she left the courtroom
Prosecutor David Mestvirishvili previously said she faced up to 20 years behind bars.
The teen has maintained that she is innocent and instead says she was violently coerced into trafficking the narcotics.
The prosecutor today repeated the charges against Culley and detailed the quantity of illegal substances found in her luggage.
Meanwhile, Culley’s lawyer said there was no evidence she had any intention of breaking the law.
‘There were people who forced my client to commit this unknowingly,’ he said.
The next court hearing is due to take place in September, unless a plea deal can be reached before.
Culley will remain behind bars until then.
Breaking down in tears throughout a 30-minute hearing at Tbilisi City Court in the Georgian capital earlier this month, she told a judge: ‘I didn’t want to do this, I was forced under torture.
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 charged with purchasing 446g of tetraphenol cannabinol and 11.2kg of cannabis abroad. Pictured: CCTV footage shows the Brit going through the automated gates at Suvarnabhumi Airport in Thailand
Prosecutors said the teen could face up to 20 years behind bars
‘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 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.
Her father told his daughter to ‘stay strong’.
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.
The British 18-year-old claimed she was violently coerced into trafficking the narcotics
Culley was denied bail after the teenager was deemed a flight risk
Culley entered a not guilty plea but her trial date, which was originally set for July 10, was postponed
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.
‘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.’
She claimed in court she was pregnant and her lawyer said she had been left ‘scared, confused and depressed’.
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
Pictured: A bikini-clad Bella with a cannabis joint in her mouth
Culley (pictured) is languishing in notorious Women’s Penitentiary Number Five
Her lawyer also described how the teen broke down on being told she could face life behind bars if convicted.
A later trial scheduled for July 10 was postponed immediately after it began due to issues concerning evidence.
Thai police released CCTV earlier this month showing Culley calmly passing through airport checks without showing unusual behaviour.
They said they were preparing to blacklist her ‘for entering Thailand to commit a drug offence’.
Police Major General Cherngron Rimphadee, said: ‘This matter is not complicated.
‘Police have reviewed CCTV footage and confirmed that she used a British passport to exit through the automatic passport control channel.
‘As a result, she did not interact with or speak to any immigration officers and simply exited the country.
‘The police have already released the CCTV images to the media, showing that she left without giving any signal or indication that she needed help, contrary to her claims.
‘It was a deliberate departure.’
Culley has been charged with purchasing 446g of tetraphenol cannabinol and 11.2kg of cannabis abroad.
Culley is languishing in notorious Women’s Colony Number 5 on the outskirts of Tbilisi, and could be facing 20 years in prison.
