Thai gangs may be targeting young British backpackers and recruiting them as drug mules, an expert said yesterday.
The warning came after two women were arrested for allegedly carrying large quantities of narcotics from Bangkok airport.
Bella Culley, 18, of Billingham, County Durham, was held at Tbilisi airport, Georgia, on May 11 for allegedly trying to smuggle 14kg of cannabis and hash.
She had left Thailand within hours of former air stewardess Charlotte May Lee, 21, of Coulsdon, south London, who was arrested in Sri Lanka after police said she was carrying cannabis worth £1.15million.
Thai gangs may be targeting young British backpackers and recruiting them as drug mules, according to a police expert
Bella Culley, 18, of Billingham, County Durham, was held at Tbilisi airport, Georgia, on May 11 for allegedly trying to smuggle 14kg of cannabis and hash
Former police general Jemal Janashia, one of Georgia’s top drug crime experts, told the Mail that the fact two young British women had taken off reportedly in possession of large quantities of drugs from the same airport ‘will interest investigators’.
He added: ‘They will be concerned about the possibility of a link and that Thai gangs may be attempting to recruit vulnerable British travellers.’
Culley’s father, Neil, 49, flew to the Black Sea nation as soon as he heard of her arrest, but has been unable to visit his daughter, who claims she is pregnant.
The oil rig technician said: ‘I have no experience in dealing with situations like this. It’s very difficult.’
Some 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.
