A British woman has been arrested in Sri Lanka on suspicion of smuggling 46 kilograms of a deadly new synthetic drug into Sri Lanka.
Charlotte May Lee, 21, was detained after allegedly carrying suitcases packed full of kush through Colombo’s Bandaranaike airport earlier this month.
Officials said the discovery was the airport’s largest ever seizure of the drug, which is most commonly used in West Africa and reportedly made with human bones. The stash has a reported street value of $2 million.
Ms Lee, a former flight attendant from south London, has denied the accusations and claimed that the drugs were planted there without her knowledge. She could face up to 25 years in prison if found guilty.
Her lawyers said she is being held in a prison in the city of Negombo, north of the capital, where she said she is facing hard conditions and sleeping on a concrete floor.
A legal representative told the BBC that his team is visiting her daily in the prison to ensure her wellbeing and offer support. She is reportedly in contact with her family.
Ms Lee had been in Bangkok and travelled to Sri Lanka because her visa was due to expire.
She claimed that she packed her bag the night before her flight and that someone “must have planted it [the drugs] then”.
“I know who did it”, but did not elaborate. She added that she did not check her luggage before boarding the flight to Colombo, the Sri Lankan capital.
She said: “I had never seen them [the drugs] before. I didn’t expect it all when they pulled me over at the airport.
“I thought it was going to be filled with all my stuff.” BBC
