Rayhan DemytrieCaucasus correspondent and
Tom BurgessNorth East and Cumbria
Rustavi 2The case of a British teenager accused of drug smuggling in Georgia has been delayed to “finalise a plea bargain”.
Appearing at Tbilisi City Court, Bella Culley, 19, from Billingham, Teesside, had previously been told she could face up to 15 years in jail or life imprisonment if convicted.
It is understood her family has raised enough money to significantly reduce any jail time imposed.
Malkhaz Salakaia, representing heavily pregnant Miss Culley, said he planned to appeal to the president of Georgia to pardon her after finalising the plea deal.
Judge Giorgi Gulashvili said prosecution and defence teams needed more time to finalise the sum needed for Miss Culley’s release.
The hearing was attended by the teenager’s mother and grandmother.
At a previous hearing in September, the family was told a “substantial” amount of money would lead to the teenager’s release.
The case has been postponed until October 28.
Rayhan Demytrie/Miss Culley initially went missing in Thailand before being arrested at Tbilisi International Airport on 10 May.
It is understood she arrived on a flight from Sharjah, in the United Arab Emirates.
Georgian Police said officers seized narcotic drugs from a travel bag.
Miss Culley was detained for months while the prosecution investigated where 12kg (26lbs) of marijuana and 2kg (4.4lbs) of hashish came from, and whether she was planning to hand them over to someone else.
At a hearing in July she pleaded not guilty to charges of possession and trafficking illegal drugs and claimed she had been “forced to do this through torture”.
“I just wanted to travel,” she said. “I am a good person. I am a student at university. I am a clean person. I don’t do drugs.”
