Lawyer says British teenager accused of drug smuggling is 'not far from childhood' as she faces life in Georgian prison
A teenager accused of smuggling drugs 'hates' the food in prison in Georgia and just wants to come home, her lawyer has said.
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British drug smuggling suspect Bella Culley's lawyer has claimed the teenager is "not far from childhood" but ready to defend herself as she faces life in a Georgian jail.
The 18-year-old, from Billingham on Teesside, vanished in Thailand before turning up in Georgia where she faces a life sentence for allegedly importing cannabis.
She is accused of smuggling 30 pounds of Marijuana and is charged with illegally buying, possessing and importing a large quantity of drugs.
Malkhaz Salakaia, Bella's family-appointed lawyer, met with the teenager for the first time in the country's only female prison, Tbilisi Prison No.5, and claimed he had to explain to her where she was geographically.
After the two-hour meeting, in which Bella also gave evidence to investigators, Mr Salakaia said his client did not give any complaints about the location of detention.
But when asked whether he would describe Bella as an adequate adult, he answered "no".
Their meeting comes after Mariam Kublashvili - a celebrity lawyer who formerly represented speedboat killer Jack Shepherd - visited Bella on Monday and offered her services for free.
Bella has now also been visited by her father Niel Culley, who was spotted at the prison on Wednesday in what is thought to be their first meeting since the arrest.
Read more: Criminal records stolen in 'significant' cyber attack on Legal Aid agency
According to the mirror, the 49-year-old was seen going into prison with a medium-sized dark blue bag of supplies for his daughter.
Ms Kublashvili had previously said the teenager had requested fruit, after expressing her dislike for the prison food, and warmer clothing.
She is reportedly 'getting along well' with her two other cellmates in the all-female jail.
Ms Kublashvili - who appeared on the Georgian version of Strictly - described the teen as "very open" and "charming" in their first meeting.
Speaking on Monday, she told the Mirror: "She is pregnant and needs medical care which she complained she wasn’t getting – there were no tests / checks or medical examinations done, she told me.
"She said she asked for a doctor, but the doctor wasn’t speaking English and they couldn’t understand each other.
"She doesn’t fit a profile of [a] drug trafficker at all. For anyone with any experience in dealing with such legal cases, it would be quite obvious that she is a victim here, she’s been used and manipulated. I have a 20-year-old child myself and can only imagine what her parents must be feeling.”
Her father has said he will stay in Georgia to be by her side for "as long as it takes".
Mr Culley told the Mail earlier this week: "I can’t say anything but I will be here for as long as it takes. I obviously have no experience in dealing with situations like this, and it’s very difficult."
Mr Culley, who lives in Vietnam and works in oil, is with his sister Kerrie Culley in the Georgian capital in support of Bella.
Local media had previously shared footage of Bella being led in handcuffs into a police station.
She is alleged to have '34 hermetically sealed packages containing marijuana... as well as 20 packages of hashish' in her possession at the airport.
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) states it cannot get Brits out of jail in Georgia or help anyone get special treatment because they are British.
Its website has a page specifically about arrests in the nation, in which it states "prison conditions vary".
It states: "It is usual in Georgia for cells/dormitories to be shared. There is no set maximum number of occupants, rather it depends on the type of facility, size of the room, etc."
Before police confirmed the arrest, her mother Lyanne told Teesside Live: “She flew out to the Philippines after Easter with a friend and she was there for three weeks."
She continued: “She was posting loads of pictures and then she went to Thailand on about May 3.
“The last message she sent was to me and that was on Saturday at 5.30pm saying she was going to Facetime me later.
“That was the last message anyone has received from what we can figure out up to now.
"I’m just waiting on her dad who is now in Bangkok to get back with any more information. I just want her home and safe or to hear her gorgeous little voice."