Bali | British 'drug mule' trio spared death penalty

Three Britons who faced the death penalty in Bali for allegedly smuggling £300,000 worth of cocaine have been spared.

Lisa Stocker, 39, a mum-of-three, and her partner, Jon Collyer, 39, had travelled from the UK via Qatar and were stopped in Indonesia's capital after a routine airport x-ray detected suspicious items, namely 17 packages of cocaine totalling around 994g.

The couple first appeared in court on February 3 alongside Phineas Float, 31, who was accused of receiving the packages at an airport hotel.

Under Indonesia’s strict drug laws, the trio could have faced the death penalty after being accused of violating Article 131 of Indonesian Narcotic law.

Indonesia has previously handed out severe punishments for drug smuggling, though it has upheld a temporary halt on the death sentence since 2017.

However, due to good behaviour, Presiding Judge Heriyati said he would reduce the trio’s sentence as they had admitted their offences and behaved “politely.”

The three defendants, all from East Sussex, accepted the verdict and will not be filing an appeal.

The time they have served since their arrest in February will count towards their sentence, meaning they are expected to be released early next year.

In the past, convicted drug traffickers - especially those caught with large amounts - have been executed by firing squad in Indonesia.

Those who escape the death penalty are often sentenced to life imprisonment.

In mid-July, lead prosecutor Made Dipa Umbara suggested the trio might be able to avoid a serious prison sentence.

He announced they will ask to "sentence the defendants to one year in prison" each, minus the time already served.

Umbara noted that all three had behaved well in court, apologised for their role in the smuggling plot and promised not to reoffend.

On July 15, Ms Stocker broke down in tears as she told the court she had been conned into carrying illicit packages.

She claimed a friend in the UK gave her the packages of Angel Delight and asked her to take them to Bali.

During the trial which began at the beginning of last month, Stocker admitted to carrying the illicit drugs in Angel Delight packages, claiming she was given them by a friend.

“Jon and I had been to Bali twice carrying packages from [him]. I was shocked after finding out it was cocaine,” she told the court.

Collyer also admitted what they did was “very stupid” and promised not to do it again.

In a statement provided to the BBC at the beginning of the trial, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said it was “providing consular support to three British nationals detained in Indonesia and [was] in contact with the local authorities.

“The British government’s policy on the death penalty is clear: we oppose it in all circumstances as a matter of principle.”

Source: Evening Standard, Niva Yadav, The Sun, Syaff, July 24, 2025

"One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed,
but by the punishments that the good have inflicted."

— Oscar Wilde

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