Overview
- A Tbilisi court sentenced Bella Culley to five months and 25 days, equal to her time in custody, after her family paid a 500,000 lari fine under a plea agreement.
- Georgian prosecutors say she was arrested on May 10 at Tbilisi airport with 12 kilograms of marijuana and 2 kilograms of hashish in her luggage.
- Culley initially pleaded not guilty, claiming she was tortured in Thailand and coerced into transporting the drugs, a claim reported by her team but not adjudicated in Georgia.
- Her lawyer said her passport will be returned and she is free to leave the country following Monday’s court decision.
- The resolution comes as Georgia has tightened drug penalties, though its system permits plea deals that can limit jail time; Culley was recently transferred to a mother-and-baby unit during late pregnancy.