Bella Culley’s lawyer blasts UK embassy for abandoning pregnant teen ‘drug mule’

Bella Culley’s ‘dissatisfied’ lawyer Malkhaz Salakaia has pointed the finger at the embassy by accusing it of not doing enough to help his client, who is five months pregnant

The lawyer of pregnant teen ‘drug mule’ Bella Culley has blasted the British embassy in Georgia.

The 19-year-old has been facing life behind bars after allegedly taking illegal drugs into the country but a potential plea deal could see her walk free. Now her lawyer has hit out at the British embassy, accusing it of not doing enough to help her. Malkhaz Salakaia told the BBC^[1] he was “dissatisfied” with the British authorities for not supporting his client. Bella, about five months pregnant, has not been visited by the embassy since her family appointed a legal representative, nor had it provided any written references, he said.

READ MORE: Bella Culley: Pregnant ‘drug mule’ on verge of deal which could set her free^[2]READ MORE: Pregnant ‘drug mule’ Bella Culley reveals baby’s gender as she pleads with court^[3]

The Foreign Office said it was speaking to Bella’s family but confirmed only one in-person visit had been made to the prison, on 16 May, the BBC reported. A Foreign Office spokesperson said: “We are supporting a British woman who is detained in Georgia and are in contact with her family and the local authorities.”

At Bella’s latest hearing in the country’s capital, Tbilisi, on Tuesday a court heard how a plea agreement was on the cards. The deal means Bella, who claimed to have been forced by torture, could be released from prison by paying an undisclosed fine. Asked by judge Giorgi Gelashvili whether there were any updates about a plea agreement, Bella’s lawyer Mr Salakaia said: “We are having discussion about the plea agreement and the process is successful. Most probably the agreement will be made, but Bella’s family needs some time to get ready for it technically.”

by the judge at Tbilisi City Court whether the prosecution had offered conditions for the plea agreement, prosecutor Vakhtang Tsalughelashvili confirmed. The court also heard how both sides accepted the evidence in the case is undoubtable. The judge denied bail with the next hearing set for October 9.

After Tuesday’s hearing, Bella’s lawyer Mr Salakaia said: “The discussion is quite ‘ripe’, but money needs to be paid for the fruit.” Asked whether it was possible for her sentence to be annulled, he said: “Yes, it depends on the amount of money paid.” He added: “The higher the fine, the smaller the sentence. Right now Bella’s family is not ready to pay a concrete amount of money. We’ll see.” It is unclear exactly how much the fine could be.

Bella’s mum, Lyanne Kennedy, who was at the hearing, told her daughter she loved her. Bella, from Billingham, Teesside, vanished in Thailand before turning up in Georgia where she was arrested at Tbilisi International Airport in May. Marijuana and hashish were allegedly found in her luggage. In July at a hearing, Bella said: “I didn’t want to do this. I was forced by torture… All I wanted to do was to travel and this happened to me. I’m clean – I had nothing in my blood test. I wanted to make my family proud.”

Meanwhile, at a later hearing at the end of July, it was disclosed in the courtroom that Bella is having a boy. At the hearing, Bella told the judge: “I hope you understand my story through my eyes. I never thought something like this would happen to me.”