In a case that has gripped both the UK and Georgia, 19-year-old Bella Culley from Billingham, Teesside, finds herself navigating the harsh realities of the Georgian penal system while heavily pregnant and awaiting sentencing for drug smuggling. Her story, unfolding since her May 2025 arrest, has drawn attention to the vulnerabilities of young travelers, the reach of international crime syndicates, and the strict drug laws of Eastern Europe.
Culley, a nursing student described by family as adventurous and independent, vanished in Thailand earlier this year. Her disappearance sent shockwaves through her community and family, who later learned she had surfaced in Tbilisi, Georgia. Authorities at Tbilisi International Airport discovered 12 kilograms of marijuana and 2 kilograms of hashish in her luggage, an amount estimated to be worth £200,000, according to The Independent and Daily Mail.
The arrest marked the start of a harrowing ordeal. Bella was initially held in Rustavi Prison Number Five, a facility notorious for its tough conditions. For five months, she endured what her mother, Lyanne Kennedy, described as “a hole in the ground for a toilet, communal showers only twice a week, and just one hour of fresh air daily.” Meals were makeshift at best; Bella reportedly boiled pasta in a kettle and toasted bread over a candle. “She now gets two hours out for walking, she can use the communal kitchen, has a shower in her room and a proper toilet. They all cook for each other. Bella has been making eggy bread and cheese toasties, and salt and pepper chicken,” Kennedy told the BBC, highlighting the improvements after her daughter was moved to a mother and baby unit in early November.
The transfer to the mother and baby unit came as Bella reached 35 weeks of pregnancy, with her due date expected before Christmas. The move has provided her with somewhat better conditions and the ability to cook for herself, learn Georgian, and bond with other mothers. Still, the shadow of her sentencing looms large. “Will I be able to take the baby with me if I go back to jail?” she asked her lawyer during a recent hearing, according to Daily Mail. Her lawyer assured her, “Nobody is going to take the baby away from you.”
Bella’s legal battle has been as complex as her personal ordeal. Initially facing up to 20 years or even life in prison under Georgia’s strict anti-narcotics laws, her prospects changed when her family managed to raise £137,000 (500,000 Georgian Lari) for a plea bargain. This payment, confirmed by both her mother and her solicitor Malkhaz Salakaia, resulted in a significant reduction of her sentence to two years. “She pleaded guilty, fully cooperated with the investigation, and the plea bargain has just been reached,” Salakaia told the court. While the sum was not enough to secure her immediate release, it spared her the possibility of decades behind bars. Her time already served since May will count toward her sentence, leaving just over 18 months remaining, and there is a possibility she may be allowed house arrest during the last month of her pregnancy, for up to 10 months in total.
But how did Bella find herself in this predicament? According to her own statements, she was coerced into smuggling drugs by a British gang that had threatened her and her family. Bella recounted to the court and media that she was tortured—burned with a hot iron and shown a beheading video—to force her compliance. “I didn't want to do this. I was forced by torture... All I wanted to do was to travel,” Bella said during a July hearing, as reported by The Mirror. She maintained that she was unaware of the drugs hidden in her bags and did not even realize that Tbilisi was a city, not a country, when she landed in Georgia. Her mother emphasized to the BBC that Bella “is a clean person and did not do drugs.”
Prosecutor Vakhtang Tsalugelashvili confirmed in Tbilisi City Court, “The plea bargain has been reached, our conditions have been met – two years of imprisonment and a fine of 500,000 Georgian Lari.” The family’s fundraising efforts, which included both of Bella’s parents—her mother, a charity worker, and her father, Niel Culley, an oil rig technician—highlighted the immense financial and emotional toll the ordeal has exacted.
Bella’s case is emblematic of a broader trend. As reported by Daily Mail, there has been a surge in young backpackers being targeted and groomed by British gangs operating out of Thailand, where cannabis has recently been legalized. With increased scrutiny from the UK’s National Crime Agency shutting down postal smuggling routes, traffickers have resorted to recruiting vulnerable travelers as drug mules. Bella’s story, with its elements of coercion, deception, and international intrigue, underscores the dangers facing young people abroad.
Meanwhile, Bella’s family and legal team continue to navigate the complexities of the Georgian justice system. Sentencing is scheduled for Monday, November 10, 2025, at 2pm local time. While the plea bargain has brought some relief, uncertainty remains. The family’s payment, though substantial, fell short of the amount required for immediate release, and Bella’s future—along with that of her unborn child—remains uncertain.
Back in Teesside, the community has watched the saga unfold with a mix of sympathy and anxiety. Bella’s story has also intersected with other local headlines, from environmental efforts by local families to the continued activism of Ann Ming, who recently met with the justice secretary to keep her daughter’s killer behind bars. These stories, though varied, share a common thread of resilience in the face of adversity.
For now, Bella Culley waits in her Georgian cell, trying to make the best of her circumstances—cooking makeshift meals, learning a new language, and preparing for motherhood in the most unlikely of places. Her case serves as a stark reminder of the unpredictable perils of travel, the far-reaching consequences of organized crime, and the enduring strength of family bonds under extraordinary strain.
