Father of Brit teen accused of drug smuggling vows to stay in Georgia ‘as long as it takes’
19 May 2025, 10:42 | Updated: 20 May 2025, 09:53
The father of suspected British drug mule Bella Culley has spoken out about his daughter’s case.
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Bella May Culley, 18, was arrested on suspicion of smuggling 30 pounds of cannabis, and is charged with illegally buying, possessing and importing a large quantity of drugs.
Her father, Niel Culley, 49, has now said he’s been unable to visit his child nearly a week after he flew to the country to be by her side.
Mr Culley told the Mail: "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."
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Mr Culley, who lives in Vietnam and works in oil, is with his sister Kerrie Culley in the Georgian capital in support of Bella.
Miss Culley could now face two decades or more behind bars in the country's only female prison, Tbilisi Prison No.5, located 45 minutes away from the ex-Soviet capital.
Local media shared footage of her 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.”
