A British couple is facing 30 years behind bars after allegedly attempting to smuggle two suitcases worth of cannabis into the UK.
Holly Cooper and her boyfriend Taylor Johnson, both 20, were arrested in Istanbul, Turkey, on a flight from Thailand. Officers apprehended the pair as they were heading toward their connecting flight to London, at the end of last month.
Following questioning they were thrown into an overcrowded holding cell where Taylor was reportedly beaten up by Turkish thugs, sources in his family claimed.
The couple, both from Wednesbury in the West Midlands, were later moved to another jail, although it could be a year before the case comes to trial and they do not have their own lawyers, instead being represented by a public legal team.
Friends are now attempting to raise money to cover the couple’s legal fees as their concerned families agonise over when the next update will come. Should the couple be convicted, they face a minimum sentence of between 10 and 30 years behind bars.
The couple were described as “good kids” by a family friend. The family friend, according to The Sun, said: “OK, they’ve done something stupid this time, but everyone makes mistakes.
“They’ve been recruited and groomed by bigger criminals and exploited by them. They are alone in a Turkish prison. It’s shocking and apparently Taylor has been beaten up. The families are in bits.”
In February, Holly posted snaps taken in Gran Canaria, Spain, before the couple travelled to Thailand last month. They then attempted to travel back to the UK on April 26, before they were detained by Turkish police.
A fundraiser on GoFundMe had been set up by Taylor’s family to try and help pay his legal fees but the page appears to have now been taken down.
The page said: “To some it may be cheeky but if you was put in this position you would do anything to be able to raise the funds.
“Please if you do not want to help don’t but if you could just donate as little as pound it will all help and be very much appreciated.”
A FCDO spokesperson said: “We are providing support to two British nationals detained in Turkey as well as their families, and are in touch with local authorities.”
Last year, UK citizens were detained in several countries including Spain, Sri Lanka, Ghana, Germany, Indonesia, Chile, and the United States, often while carrying vast quantities of drugs in their luggage.
Mirror