A 21-year-old British woman is facing serious charges after being accused of bringing a large amount of strong synthetic cannabis into Sri Lanka. She recently appeared in court in Colombo.
Charlotte May Lee, who is from Coulsdon in South London, was arrested at Colombo’s airport. Officials found 46 kilograms of a drug known as ‘Kush’ inside her suitcase.
She had flown to Colombo from Bangkok, Thailand. Authorities at Bandaranaike International Airport stopped her and took her into custody on Monday, May 11.
Footage from outside the Colombo courthouse shows Charlotte being led to a police van by officers.
She was seen crying during her court appearance.
Charlotte used to work as a flight attendant for TUI. During the hearing, she stayed in a cell at the back of the courtroom. She was later brought to the stand, but she struggled to understand what was being said because the court used the local Sinhalese language.
Police brought the 46kg of synthetic cannabis into the courtroom as part of their ongoing investigation.
Charlotte is expected to return to court in two weeks for another hearing.
If found guilty, she could spend up to 25 years in a harsh Sri Lankan prison. However, she insists that she has been framed.
Speaking from behind bars at a women’s prison, Charlotte told MailOnline that she didn’t know there were drugs in her luggage when she left for Sri Lanka.
She explained that she was shocked when airport staff opened her bag and found drugs. She expected to see only her personal belongings.
Charlotte said she had already packed the night before while staying in Bangkok. Because her flight was early, she didn’t open the bags again before heading to the airport.
She believes someone planted the drugs while her bags were left unattended in the hotel room.
She also claimed, “I know who did it,” suggesting she has an idea of who might have set her up.
Charlotte had been working on a party cruise in Thailand, but since her 30-day visa was about to expire, she decided to visit nearby Sri Lanka while waiting for a new visa.
She said Sri Lanka was only a short flight away and she had never been there before, so she thought it would be a good place to visit while waiting.
Charlotte added that the people she thinks planted the drugs were supposed to meet her in Sri Lanka, but instead, she ended up in jail.
