‘Cocaine’ Cassie Sainsbury has plea deal accepted six year

Adelaide drug mule Cassie Sainsbury has been sentenced to six years behind bars in Colombia after a judge agreed to a plea deal.

The 22-year-old was initially sentenced to 30 years in prison for trying to smuggle 5.8kgs of cocaine out of the country in April. 

Sainsbury is teaching English inside the prison and with time already served, plus her work in jail, she could be released in as little as three years, the Nine Network reports.  

 

Adelaide drug mule Cassie Sainsbury (pictured at hear plea hearing) has been sentenced to six years behind bars in Colombia after a judge agreed to a plea deal

Sainsbury is teaching English inside the prison and with time already served, plus her work in jail, she could be released in as little as three years

Sainsbury is teaching English inside the prison and with time already served, plus her work in jail, she could be released in as little as three years

The 22-year-old was initially sentenced to 30 years in prison for trying to smuggle 5.8kgs of cocaine out of the country in April 

The 22-year-old was initially sentenced to 30 years in prison for trying to smuggle 5.8kgs of cocaine out of the country in April 

The cocaine was discovered in 18 headphones in Sainsbury's luggage after she was stopped at Bogota's El Dorado International Airport.

The cocaine was discovered in 18 headphones in Sainsbury’s luggage after she was stopped at Bogota’s El Dorado International Airport.

A Bogota court heard in October that the deal had been agreed to by prosecution and defence, but an earlier plea deal for the Adelaide woman fell through in August 

A Bogota court heard in October that the deal had been agreed to by prosecution and defence, but an earlier plea deal for the Adelaide woman fell through in August 

The cocaine was discovered in 18 headphones in Sainsbury’s luggage after she was stopped at Bogota’s El Dorado International Airport.

She was caught following a tip-off from the the United States Drug Enforcement Agency.

An earlier plea deal was rejected in August.

She has now spent more than six months behind bars at Bogota Women’s Prison.

A Bogota court heard that the deal had been agreed to by prosecution and defence, with Sainsbury’s lawyer saying they both agreed the man she claims to be behind the illegal operation, known as ‘Angelo’, does exist. 

But if time served is considered that will reduce the sentence again by a further six months – giving the South Australian local her freedom by 2019.

She was caught following a tip-off from the the United States Drug Enforcement Agency

She was caught following a tip-off from the the United States Drug Enforcement Agency

She has now spent more than six months behind bars at Bogota Women's Prison

She has now spent more than six months behind bars at Bogota Women’s Prison

Ms Sainsbury was caught trying to fly out of Bogota's El Dorado International Airport in April with 5.8 kilograms of cocaine stuffed into 18 headphones hidden in her luggage 

Ms Sainsbury was caught trying to fly out of Bogota’s El Dorado International Airport in April with 5.8 kilograms of cocaine stuffed into 18 headphones hidden in her luggage 

The AFP reiterated it was liaising with Colombian authorities on the matter before the sentence was announced but wouldn’t comment further on operational matters.

Her family in Adelaide is thrilled by the news, with her sister Khala Sainsbury telling Seven News: ‘It couldn’t have gone any better. I believe she’ll be okay, she’s strong.’

The judge hearing the case earlier granted a request from Mr Herran to close the hearing to all media.

Resembling the first plea bargain – rejected after Sainsbury repeatedly changed her story – the six-year deal was presented on Friday in the Bogota Special Circuit Court. 

If time served is considered that will reduce the sentence again by a further six months - giving the South Australian local her freedom by 2019.

If time served is considered that will reduce the sentence again by a further six months – giving the South Australian local her freedom by 2019.

The 22-year-old has now spent more than six months behind bars at Bogota Women's Prison

The 22-year-old has now spent more than six months behind bars at Bogota Women’s Prison

Read more at DailyMail.co.uk