Pregnant British teen accused of drug smuggling to be released from Georgian jail, prosecutor says

TBILISI, Georgia (AP) — British teenager Bella May Culley, who was arrested in Georgia on drug smuggling charges earlier this year, will be released from prison Monday, case prosecutor Vakhtang Tsalughelashvili told The Associated Press. Culley, 19, who is pregnant, was arrested in May at Tbilisi Airport and accused of attempting to smuggle 12 kilograms (26.5 pounds) of marijuana and 2 kilograms (4.4 pounds) of hashish into the country. The verdict in her case is yet to be confirmed and is expected to be announced in court later Monday. Georgian prosecutors were considering a two-year sentence, but “decided to consider the time she has already served,” Tsalughelashvili told the AP. Culley’s lawyer, Malkhaz Salakhaia, said that the teenager would be given her passport and would free to leave the country Monday. Culley initially faced a maximum penalty of up to 15 years or life imprisonment, but was in discussion with prosecutors about a potential plea bargain. In Georgia, a 3.7-million nation in the South Caucasus, the law allows for financial plea agreements that can be reached to reduce or eliminate a prison sentence in certain cases. Such plea agreements are often reached in drug-related cases. Culley’s mother, Lyanne Kennedy, told reporters that the family has paid 500,000 lari (approx $184,000) as part of the plea bargain. Culley, who is from Teesside, in northeast England, was reported missing in Thailand prior to her arrest at Tbilisi Airport on May 10. The teenager pleaded not guilty to the charges after her arrest, saying she was tortured in Thailand and forced to carry the drugs. Salakhaia has told reporters that she showed visible physical signs of torture upon her arrival in Georgia.