MICHAELLA MCCOLLUM AND her family have issued legal proceedings against an Irish newspaper for alleged harassment and intimidation.
In a statement released by Belfast solicitor Kevin Winters today the family thanked media outlets for “the respectful and professional manner in which they have made approaches to speak with them”.
The statement continues: “For the most part there have been no issues or difficulties save for one intimidating approach.
“On Sunday two members of staff from an Irish daily newspaper subjected the McCollum family including Michaella to harassment and intimidation as they tried to get into a taxi.
“We are instructed to issue legal proceedings against the newspaper in relation to the incident and a formal letter of claim will issue tomorrow.”
The family acknowledges the “public interest” in the case in the statement, but asks the media to “give them space and privacy to allow the next stages of the parole process to work through”.
RTÉ interview
The statement also notes that McCollum received no payment for her interview with RTÉ which aired on Sunday night.
McCollum (23) from Dungannon, Co Tyrone was jailed along with Scottish woman Melissa Reid after being arrested at Lima Airport in August 2013. They were each sentenced to six years in prison for trying to smuggle 11kg of cocaine to Madrid.
McCollum was released last week under a newly introduced parole scheme for foreign nationals after serving two years and three months of her sentence.
A pending judicial hearing is set to determine the conditions of her parole.
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