Updated 1.23pm
DRUGS MULE MICHAELLA McCollum Connolly has had her transfer from Peru to a prison in Northern Ireland approved.
This day last year, the 21-year-old from Northern Ireland was arrested, along with Scottish woman Melissa Reid at Lima airport.
Peruvian authorities found £1.5 million worth of cocaine in their luggage and they were each sentenced to six years and eight months after a high profile case during which they were dubbed by the media as ‘The Peru 2′.
Reid’s transfer back to Scotland had already been approved a number of months ago but today McCollum Connolly’s solicitor confirmed that she would also be moved to a prison closer to home.
She will be transferred to the Ash House Women’s Prison in south Belfast to serve the remainder of her sentence.
In a statement, solicitor Kevin Winters said the 21-year-old and her family have “endured a significant amount of stress during what has been a traumatic time for them”.
Her family took part in a high level of engagement with many different agencies in order to process her transfer, he said.
Waters said the process had not been straightforward but they received confirmation last week. He said he understood that the relevant authorities in Peru and the UK have put a system in place in order to make sure the transfer takes place “as efficiently as possible”.
A spokesperson for the Northern Ireland Prison Service said today that they do not comment on individual cases.
“All transfer requests are, however, dealt with as expeditiously as possible,” they added.
First published 10.51am.
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