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Pregnant British Teen Bella Culley Freed in Georgia After Plea Deal and Time-Served Sentence

A plea deal worth 500,000 lari led prosecutors to count time served, with the decision based on her age, pregnancy, cooperation.

Overview

  • Tbilisi City Court found Bella Culley guilty and imposed a sentence of five months and 25 days, matching her time in custody, leading to her release on Monday.
  • Culley was arrested in May at Tbilisi Airport after authorities said she attempted to bring in 12 kilograms of marijuana and 2 kilograms of hashish.
  • Her family paid 500,000 Georgian lari (about £137,000/$184,000) as part of the plea arrangement, which Georgian law permits in some drug cases.
  • Her lawyer said she will receive her passport and is free to leave Georgia; she is about 35 weeks pregnant and due before Christmas.
  • Culley has alleged she was coerced and tortured into carrying the drugs, and she spent months in harsh conditions at Rustavi Prison before a recent transfer to a mother-and-baby unit.