A BRIT facing the death penalty accused of trafficking more than £300,000 worth of cocaine into Bali, today told a court: “I was framed.”
Lisa Stocker, 39, told Denpasar central court that she was fitted up when she entered Bali with 992 grams of cocaine disguised as the popular dessert Angel Delight.
SuppliedAll three defendants could face death by firing squad if they are found guilty[/caption]
SuppliedThey appeared in court today[/caption]
SuppliedThe trial continues on June 17[/caption]
“The packages were not mine, but someone else’s. I was framed,” she said.
Stocker, a mum-of-three, and her partner, Jon Collyer, 39, both from East Sussex, were arrested at Bali’s international airport on February 1.
They had travelled from the UK through Qatar and were arrested in Bali after a routine x-ray at the airport alerted officials to the suspicious packages.
The couple appeared in court with Phineas Float, 31, also of East Sussex, who is accused of receiving the packages in an airport hotel on February 3.
Float was arrested following a sting operation set up by police where they used Stocker and Collyer as lures.
All three defendants could face death by firing squad if they are found guilty of trafficking the narcotics.
Stocker said that she had been given the 17 packets of Angel Delight by a third man who she claimed was a friend in the UK and who instructed her to take the Angel Delight packets to Bali.
“Jon and I had been to Bali twice carrying packages from [him]. I was shocked after finding out it was cocaine,” she said.
In his statement to the court, Jon Collyer said that he had not received any payment and that he paid for the trip to Bali himself.
“[He] gave me some goods to be handed over to his friend in Bali.
“[He] told me the package contained snacks, such as chocolate, pudding and chips.
“[He] said that someone would pick up the package when I arrived in Bali,” Collyer said.
However, police prosecutor Made Umbara alleges the man gave Collyer £2,130 to pay for accommodation and flights from the UK to Bali for the couple.
Float laughed in front of the media when the three were paraded at a press conference in February.
While walking to the court room last week for the first day of his trial he yelled at journalist to “f**k off”.
Why are Brits targeted as drug mules?
Growing numbers of Brits are being targeted by drug gangs to smuggle their wares around the world, authorities have claimed.
The high profile cases of Brits Bella Culley and Charlotte May Lee – who are being held on drug charges in Georgia and Sri Lanka respectively – have put a spotlight on the issue.
Gangs based in Thailand are reportedly luring potential mules with the promise of big payouts and lavish travel breaks in return for carrying drugs back with them.
Cannabis is decriminalised in Thailand, which has seen it become so cheap there that gangs have sought to export it at vast profit.
One reason cited by authorities for the targeting of Brits specifically is that tourists from the UK have visa free access to Thailand.
British and Thai police launched a joint operation last July that laid bare the scale of the gang recruitment drive.
Some 800 people, including 50 Brits, have been held in Thailand since then for alleged drug smuggling.
But today he was unusually reserved in court.
“I took the packages from Jonathan and Lisa after getting a message from [him].
“I wanted to help a friend and did not know it was cocaine, “he told the court.
He said that he was shocked that Lisa was involved in any alleged trafficking plot because she “chose to live a healthy life.”
The trial continues on June 17.
EPAStocker and her partner, Jon Collyer were arrested at Bali’s international airport[/caption]
EPAThe couple appeared in court with Phineas Float[/caption]