A BRIT accused of trying to smuggle £1.2m of killer addictive drugs into Sri Lanka fears being locked away “for a long time” – and is due to appear in court tomorrow.
Charlotte May Lee, 21, has been left a “rotting” jail cell in Colombo and fears a 25-year jail term if convicted.
InstagramCharlotte May Lee was stopped by Sri Lankan customs officials after stepping off a flight from Thailand[/caption]
InstagramShe shared pictures of herself in Thailand[/caption]
Tim StewartIt was claimed her two suitcases were stuffed full of 46kg of super-strong ‘kush’ marijuana[/caption]
She faces horrific conditions in the maximum security Welikada Prison in the capital Colombo if found guilty
She told pals in an emotional phone call from behind bars that she fears being made an example of because it’s Sri Lanka‘s biggest bust of kush ever – and she could be locked away for more than 20 years.
British embassy officials have warned they will only be able to visit her once every six months if she is convicted for drug smuggling.
Pals said before her trip Charlotte had splashed out on new wheels for her £30,000 Audi car, and she also paid £5,000 to have new teeth fitted.
Charlotte told friends that she has struck up a friendship behind bars with a prison guard – and that new relationship is sustaining her through the ordeal.
A friend who spoke to Charlotte said: “She thinks she’s going away for a long time.
“She is scared but talks of becoming very friendly with a prison guard.”
They added that Charlotte is aware of the similar case of Bella Culley – an 18-year-old arrested in Georgia who is also accused of drug smuggling.
However, the two youngsters have never met, and Charlotte “doesn’t know if there is any connection” to her own ordeal.
“At the moment she can have visitors from 9.30am til 4.30pm, although there is no-one to go and see her in Sri Lanka, and her family are not flying out to meet her,” the friend said.
“All that changes when she is formally charged in court tomorrow. Then the doors slam shut and she’s in the hellish prison on her own.”
“Her life is in the balance and she’s scared.”
The part-time beautician, of Chipstead in Surrey, was stopped by Sri Lankan customs officials after stepping off a flight from Thailand last Monday.
It was claimed her two suitcases were stuffed full of 46kg of super-strong ‘kush’ marijuana – which is 25 times more potent than powerful opioid fentanyl.
She does not know if she will be remanded formally – or sentenced for her ‘crime‘.
A family pal said: “She has a court appearance and hopefully things will become clearer. She’s frantic.”
Charlotte, a former TUI stewardess, left the UK for Thailand weeks ago, The Sun exclusively revealed.
The youngster had posted a picture of herself in Bangkok in April.
Her arrest has stunned pals in the beauty salon where she works as a nail technician.
She was allowed a teary phone call from prison in Colombo in Sri Lanka.
A loved one said yesterday: “Charlotte was vague before leaving but just said she was going to meet a British guy who can’t come home.
“They were meeting in Thailand. We’re frantically worried.
“She’d had a nasty split with a boyfriend before leaving the UK and was trying to get back on her feet.”
British Embassy officials in Sri Lanka visited Charlotte in jail last Wednesday.
If she is found guilty, she could face horrific conditions in the maximum security Welikada Prison in the capital Colombo.
This prison, which has a population more than double its capacity, has seen deadly riots over the decades.
Inmates have also reported seeing rats on the loose and finding maggots in their food.
“We are treated as far less than human,” one inmate told Al Jazeera back in 2011.
“About 150 of us sleep in a cell designed for 75 people.
“An open drain infested with rats runs the perimeter of the room.
“Recently, one of the inmates was bitten and had to be rushed to the hospital for an anti-rabies shot.”
Kush, a highly addictive synthetic drug, has claimed the lives of thousands in West Africa in an alarmingly short time – and is spreading globally at an alarming rate.
Kush first appeared in Sierra Leone in 2022, and is cut with an array of additives including acetone, the opioid tramadol and formalin, a toxic chemical commonly used to preserve bodies in mortuaries.
The drug is dirt-cheap, and has proved irresistible to unemployed youngsters seeking an escape from lives of grinding poverty.
In December 2023 Sri Lankan cops arrested 15,000 people in a week in a drive against drug trafficking, amid claims that criminal gangs use it as a hub, moving huge amounts of heroin, hashish and cannabis through the country.
A Foreign Office spokesperson told The Sun: “We are supporting a British woman who has been arrested in Sri Lanka and are in contact with her family and the local authorities.”
Police HandoutCharlotte was detained at the main airport in the country’s capital Colombo on Monday after arriving from a flight from Bangkok[/caption]
It was claimed her two suitcases were stuffed full of 46kg of super-strong ‘kush’ marijuana
Inmates tell of being treated ‘less than human’ in the Welikada prison Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
