"I feel as though I have no human rights here."
A 21-year-old woman from London detained in a Sri Lankan prison for alleged drug smuggling has told of her despair.
Charlotte May Lee, from Croydon, was arrested at Bandaranaike Airport in Colombo on May 11, 2025, after authorities found £1.2 million worth of cannabis in her luggage..
Police say they discovered 46 kilograms of “Kush” cannabis in Lee’s suitcase.
The former air stewardess had just arrived on a flight from Bangkok, Thailand, when customs officials detained her.
This is reportedly the largest amount of Kush ever seized at the airport since it opened in 1967.
Lee is currently held at Negombo Prison, north of Colombo.
She spent a week sleeping on a bug-infested sofa at the Narcotics Bureau before being remanded in custody at Negombo Magistrates’ Court.
The court extended her detention for 14 days while further hearings are scheduled. She faces two charges: possession and importation of illegal drugs.
If convicted, the 21-year-old faces up to 25 years in prison.
Speaking about her “awful” experience, Lee said she was set up.
She told MailOnline: “I had never seen them before. I didn’t expect it all when they pulled me over at the airport.
“I thought it was going to be filled with all my stuff.”
The trainee eyelash technician claimed she had left her bags packed in her Bangkok hotel room while out for a night.
“So I left my bags in the hotel room and headed for the night out. As they were already packed, I didn’t check them again in the morning. They must have planted it then.”
Lee said she was working on a “booze cruise” in Thailand but her 30-day visa was expiring.
She travelled to Sri Lanka while waiting for a visa renewal.
Lee added: “They (the people she believed planted the drugs) were supposed to meet me here (in Thailand). But now I’m here, stuck in this jail.”
Describing prison conditions, Lee said: “I am trying my best to stay positive because what else can you do?
“I feel as though I have no human rights here.
“The shower is not really a shower, it’s just a bucket that you pour over yourself but they don’t give you anything for that.
“You are only allowed two or three hours outside in the sun a day, occasionally longer if there are a lot of women in court that day.”
Lee also said she has not eaten for two days because the food is “too spicy” and that prison officers have refused to give her ADHD medication.
She added: “I have told my lawyers – I have three of them – that I need different food.
“They said they would sort that but they still haven’t. I don’t know why.”
The Sri Lankan jail has been described by former inmates as “hell” for women, with reports of maggots in food and rats in overcrowded cells.
Charlotte May Lee’s friends have expressed disbelief over her arrest.
One said: “I couldn’t believe it. Charlotte is a hard worker and a grafter not a drug smuggler.”
A UK Foreign Office spokesperson confirmed it is providing consular support:
“We are supporting a British woman who has been arrested in Sri Lanka and are in contact with her family and the local authorities.”
Loading ...