Bella Culley, a British teenager who is eight months pregnant, is currently awaiting sentencing in a Georgian prison after being charged with drug smuggling. The situation for Culley, who is 2,600 miles away from home, is complicated by her pregnancy, and her family has managed to raise £137,000 which will help reduce her potential sentence.
Speaking to the BBC, Bella's mother, Lyanne Kennedy, revealed that her daughter is now residing in a ‘mother and baby’ unit after having spent five months in the harsher conditions of Rustavi Prison Number Five. These conditions previously included a lack of basic amenities, such as communal showers and inadequate toilet facilities. Now, Bella has access to a communal kitchen and can cook meals for herself and other inmates. Kennedy stated, Bella has been making eggy bread and cheese toasties, and salt and pepper chicken, indicating that the living conditions have improved somewhat since her transfer.
Bella has been held since May after authorities discovered 12kg of marijuana and 2kg of hashish in her luggage at Tbilisi International Airport. Despite claiming she had been coerced into smuggling the drugs, she has pleaded guilty to the charges. Georgian law mandates severe penalties for drug crimes, leading to speculation that her case may be used as a deterrent for others.
Her lawyer, Malkhaz Salakaia, has stated that there are provisions for pregnant women in Georgian law, which gives her family hope that Bella might be released before giving birth. The future remains uncertain as she prepares to learn her final sentence, which could determine her and her child’s immediate future.
Lyanne Kennedy remains steadfast in her efforts to secure her daughter’s release, emphasizing the family's perseverance amidst a complex legal battle that underscores the rigorous and sometimes brutal realities of the Georgian penal system.
