Bella Culley, 19, was released by a Georgian court after entering a last-minute plea deal in a drug-smuggling case. Arrested at Tbilisi Airport with roughly 26 pounds of marijuana and over four pounds of hashish, she pleaded guilty and will have her passport returned so she can leave Georgia. Her family reportedly paid more than $180,000 to secure a two-year sentence reduction. Culley, who is 35 weeks pregnant, alleges she was coerced and tortured; that claim is under separate investigation.
Pregnant British Teen Bella Culley Freed by Georgian Court After Last-Minute Plea Deal
Bella Culley, 19, was released by a Georgian court after entering a last-minute plea deal in a drug-smuggling case. Arrested at Tbilisi Airport with roughly 26 pounds of marijuana and over four pounds of hashish, she pleaded guilty and will have her passport returned so she can leave Georgia. Her family reportedly paid more than $180,000 to secure a two-year sentence reduction. Culley, who is 35 weeks pregnant, alleges she was coerced and tortured; that claim is under separate investigation.
17:37, 03.11.2025Society
Pregnant British Teen Released After Plea Deal
Bella Culley, a 19-year-old from Billingham in northeast England, was released by a Georgian court on Monday after prosecutors reached a last-minute plea agreement in a high-profile drug case.
Culley was arrested six months earlier at Tbilisi International Airport after authorities said they found about 26 pounds of marijuana and more than four pounds of hashish in her luggage. As part of the plea bargain, she pleaded guilty to smuggling the drugs from Thailand via the United Arab Emirates. The charge carried a potential prison term of up to 20 years.
Instead of a lengthy sentence, prosecutors agreed to a reduced outcome: Culley’s passport will be returned and she will be allowed to leave Georgia, her lawyer Malkhaz Salakaia said. Court records indicate her family paid more than $180,000 last week to secure a reduced sentence of two years.
Outside the courtroom Culley embraced her mother, Lyanne Kennedy, and described herself as "happy and relieved" to be released. She is currently about 35 weeks pregnant.
Culley has consistently maintained that she was coerced into carrying the narcotics and alleged she was tortured with a hot iron by gang members. Her lawyer said those allegations are the subject of a separate investigation by Georgian authorities. During earlier proceedings she showed scars on her right wrist to the judge and insisted she was a university student of good character who did not use drugs and only wanted to travel.
Her family reported her missing on May 3 while she was backpacking in Thailand; she turned up in Tbilisi roughly a week later. During her six months in detention she was held at Rustavi Prison Number 5, a Soviet-era facility, and was transferred to a prison "mother and baby" unit only over the weekend before her release.
Salakaia said he intends to petition Georgian President Mikheil Kavelashvili to seek a pardon on Culley’s behalf. Georgian officials have not publicly confirmed the status of that petition or the separate investigation into her coercion claims.
Note: This report summarizes developments reported by Georgian authorities and Culley’s legal team; some details remain under investigation.