Overview
- Nelson was secretly moved from Japan to Perth on Thursday night, 23 October 2026, and is now held at Bandyup Women’s Prison to serve the remainder of her six‑year term.
- She was arrested at Narita Airport in January 2023 after customs discovered almost two kilograms of methamphetamine concealed in a false bottom of a suitcase she had been asked to carry.
- Japanese courts accepted elements of an online romance‑scam narrative but upheld her conviction on the finding that she set aside doubts and complied with requests to transport the luggage.
- Her daughters and Aboriginal community leaders greeted her return with relief and emotional reunions, and the family says Nelson may be eligible to apply for parole early next year.
- The transfer, handled quietly because it required bilateral agreement between Australia and Japan, underscores how rare prisoner transfers are and highlights the limits of consular help once a citizen is convicted overseas.