Australian Woman in Colombian Jail For Trafficking 5.8kg of Cocaine
 

Adelaide Woman in Colombian Jail Accused of Trafficking 5.8kg of Cocaine
'Tall Black Man' Met Cassandra Sainsbury, 22, in Hotel Lobby Before She Left With Suitcase With 5.8kg of Cocaine - as Her Lawyer Admits There's One 'Grave Problem' With Her Defence

• Adelaide woman Cassandra Sainsbury, 22, was arrested at the El Dorado International Airport in Columbia with 5.8kg of cocaine last month
• The cocaine was found in 18 headphone boxes in Ms Sainsbury's suitcase
• She claims she was tricked into carrying them by a man named Angelo or Tom
• Her lawyer says her 'grave problem' is there is as yet no proof to back her up
• Hotel staff claim Ms Sainsbury met with a tall black man in the hotel lobby

Daily Mail Australia, 4 May 2017


The Adelaide woman held in a Colombian jail met with a tall black man in the Bogota hotel lobby before she was arrested with 5.8 kilograms of cocaine in her suitcase, hotel staff say.

The reports from 9News come as the woman's lawyer admits there is no evidence to back up her claim she was 'tricked' – by a man she knew as Angelo or Tom.

Cassandra Sainsbury, 22, was arrested at the El Dorado International Airport on April 12 after the cocaine was allegedly found hidden inside 18 headphone boxes in her suitcase.

Her Colombian-based lawyer, Orlando Herran, said the Adelaide woman claims to have been tricked by a man she knew only as Angelo or Tom.
The man offered to buy her the headphones for a cheap price and brought them to her at the airport and put them in her bag, Ms Sainsbury told Mr Herran.

But the lawyer has admitted it was a 'grave problem' there is as yet no evidence to back up her story.


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There is no proof the Australian woman held in a Colombian jail was tricked into allegedly carrying 5.8 kilograms of cocaine in her suitcase, her lawyer says


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The 22-year-old was arrested at the El Dorado International Airport on April 12 after 5.8kg of cocaine was allegedly found hidden inside 18 headphone boxes (pictured) in her suitcase


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Photographs have emerged of the moment Cassandra Sainsbury checked out of her hotel


Mr Herran was interviewed on Adelaide's FIVEaa radio in Spanish, with his quotes translated by presenter David Pentherby.
The lawyer told Mr Pentherby he believed his client's version of events.
'However, it is here that we have a very grave problem,' Mr Herran said.

He said the grave problem was that there is not yet any proof she was tricked or that the man named Angelo or Tom even exists.
Mr Herran told Mr Penberthy she has not yet decided how to plead to the drug charges.


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Mr Herran told Mr Penberthy she has not yet decided how to plead to the drug charges

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The man offered to buy her the headphones for a cheap price and brought them to her at the airport and put them in her bag, Ms Sainsbury told Mr Herran


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But Mr Herran said it's possible she could strike a deal with the Colombian district attorney for a sentence as low as four years, if they take into account her youth, character and that she has no criminal history


The lawyer said the risk of taking the case before a judge is that if they claim Ms Sainsbury is innocent without proof and lose the hearing, she could be jailed for between eight and 20 years.

But Mr Herran said it's possible she could strike a deal with the Colombian district attorney for a sentence as low as four years, if they take into account her youth, character and that she has no criminal history.

'Also that her version of what happened is probably true despite any evidence to support her claim,' Mr Penberthy said.


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Ms Sainsbury is pictured leaving the Bogota hotel with the suitcase


Earlier Ms Sainsbury's father Stuart Sainsbury told the Nine Network his daughter is no drug mule.
Mr Sainsbury also said he can't believe what is being said about his daughter on Facebook.

'I don't believe she was a drug mule, she's just my kid. Like, what parent thinks of their kid as a drug mule' Mr Sainsbury told the Nine Network on Wednesday.

Media reports have suggested Ms Sainsbury is in serious debt after the collapse of her fitness business in the South Australian town of Yorketown.

A local florist also claimed she 'disappeared basically overnight' from Adelaide owing tens of thousands in debt