A two-year legal battle has ended with an Australian grandmother being found guilty of smuggling drugs into Japan, but her family say their fight is far from over.
Perth Indigenous community leader Donna Nelson was sentenced on Wednesday to six years in jail for importing 2 kilograms of methamphetamine into Japan in January last year.
Here are the events that culminated in her conviction, and how Nelson’s family now plan to continue to support the woman they maintain is not a criminal.
The love scam defence
Her defence team told Nelson’s trial in a Japanese court last week the 58-year-old had travelled to Japan to meet a man known only as Kelly, with whom she had met and formed a relationship with online over a two-year period.
On the way she stopped over in Laos, where she almost abandoned the trip after she became sick, ending up paying for a hotel, despite being told Kelly would pay.
“I’ve cried too much and spent my last money to get this room for tonight. If this is how a wife is treated, I don’t want to be married,” she said at the time.
But Kelly convinced her to stay, she said, telling her an associate would give her a suitcase to take with her on her journey to Tokyo Airport.
Nelson said she believed the case was a sample item for Kelly’s fashion business, and had no knowledge of the drugs that were later found at the bottom of the bag.
“If I had known or even suspected illegal drugs were in the suitcase, I would have never agreed to carry it,” she told her trial.
But prosecutors rejected her defence and argued Nelson should be jailed for 10 years.
The verdict
Japan’s legal system has a 99 per cent conviction rate, with the verdict handed down by three professional judges and six civilians.
In its one concession, the court found Nelson herself was a victim.
“The defendant committed the crime because she was deceived by Kelly and she had hopes of marriage,” Judge Masakazu Kamakura said.
“The court should be clear to show the crime was not financially worthwhile.”
Nonetheless, Nelson was labelled “untrustworthy” for failing to declare the suitcase was hers, and claiming she was travelling for business not love.
The court also heard Nelson ignored early warning signs which could have prevented her downfall.
“The strangeness of the request was not resolved and the doubt something illegal could be inside the suitcase was not resolved,” the court found.
The 430 days Nelson has already served in prison will be deducted from her sentence.
Has this happened before?
In a similar case, Sydney grandmother Maria Exposto won an appeal after she was convicted of smuggling 1 kilogram of methamphetamine into Malaysia in 2014.
Exposto claimed she had fallen victim to an online romance scam and was tricked into carrying a bag containing the drugs by a man she believed was a US Army captain.
She was initially sentenced to death, but received a reprieve on appeal in 2019 and was allowed to return to Australia.
What happens now?
It’s an outcome Nelson’s family — who have been in Japan for the trial — will be hoping to replicate as they prepare to appeal the conviction.
“We cannot say any more about this case at this time as we consider preparing for an appeal, but we are devastated by this verdict and will not stop fighting for our mum,” Nelson’s five daughters said in a statement.
“Family is everything to mum, and she has been apart from us for too long.”
Speaking outside court on Wednesday, Australia’s ambassador to Japan, Justin Hayhurst, said consular assistance was being provided to Nelson and her family.
“I just wanted to say that the Australian government has been here throughout this trial to provide consular support to Ms Nelson and her family, and we will continue to provide that support,” he said.
“Today is obviously a very difficult day for the family and our sympathy is with them.”
