Copyright birminghammail
A pregnant British teenager accused of drug smuggling has been making do with makeshift meals and basic facilities whilst detained in Georgia, according to her mother. Bella Culley, 19, who is expected to give birth in December, faces formal sentencing next week following drug smuggling charges in the Eastern European nation earlier this year. The student nurse from Billingham, Teesside, disappeared in Thailand in May before surfacing in Georgia, where she was arrested after authorities discovered 11kg of cannabis and more than 400g of hashish in her luggage. Her mother, Lyanne Kennedy, has revealed the teenager has now been moved to a prison "mother and baby" unit. She had previously endured five months at Georgia's Rustavi Prison Number Five. Ms Kennedy described the harsh conditions her daughter experienced in the original cell, including a hole in the ground serving as a toilet, communal showers available just twice weekly, and only one hour of fresh air each day. Speaking to the BBC , Lyanne explained that the new unit offers improved facilities. She said: "She now gets two hours out for walking, she can use the communal kitchen, has a shower in her room and a proper toilet. They all cook for each other. Bella has been making eggy bread and cheese toasties, and salt and pepper chicken." The case has highlighted Georgia's stringent legislation and severe penalties surrounding drugs and drug trafficking. Bella has accepted a plea agreement with Georgian prosecutors and has been informed she will receive a two-year prison sentence. A Tbilisi court heard on Tuesday how the parents of a teenager, who is facing drug trafficking charges, managed to pay a hefty fine of 500,000 Georgian Lari (£138,000). Bella's mother, a charity worker, and her father Niel Culley, 49, an oil rig technician, were able to raise the funds. The teen had previously been warned that she could face up to 20 years in prison. Bella's legal representative stated that the size of the fine paid would influence the length of her prison sentence. However, if a "substantial sum" was paid, there was a chance she could avoid jail time altogether. Although the large amount raised will not secure Bella's freedom, it has significantly reduced her potential sentence. Bella alleged that she was coerced into drug trafficking by criminals who branded her with an iron and showed her a video of a man being decapitated. They threatened her with the same fate if she did not comply. During a previous hearing in July, she claimed: "I didn't want to do this. I was forced by torture... All I wanted to do was to travel." Malkhaz Salakaia, Bella's lawyer, confirmed that she pleaded guilty to smuggling drugs into Georgia. She had flown from Thailand via the United Arab Emirates.
