How British grandmother who has spent 12 years on death row awaiting execution could be spared from death this year
A UK grandmother who has spent more than a decade on death row could be spared from her grisly fate, according to a human rights barrister.
Lindsay Sandiford has been locked up at the notorious Kerobokan Prison in Bali, Indonesia, since 2013 after she attempted to smuggle £1.6million of cocaine into the country.
The 68-year-old, from Teesside, tried to bring the drugs in her suitcase while travelling from Bangkok, Thailand, but was ultimately caught out at the Ngurah Rai International Airport.
In 2012, Sandiford was found guilty and sentenced to death by a firing squad, despite prosecutors recommending a more lenient punishment.
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The Brit had claimed that she was forced into carrying the cocaine by a criminal gang who threatened to harm her family if she didn't play ball.
Sandiford even later helped police prosecute others who were involved in the drugs ring.
Her appeals against her death sentence have each been rejected - and 12 years later, Sandiford is still behind bars at Kerobokan Prison.
She's reportedly earned the nickname 'grandmother' from her fellow inmates, who she has taught to knit during her time in the brutal facility in Bali.
Sandiford has been staring death in the face for over a decade now, as Indonesia doesn't regularly carry out executions - and the last one took place in July 2016.
According to human rights barrister Felicity Gerry KC, the country could be making big changes this year, which could lead to Sandiford and a host of other inmates gaining their freedom.
Or, at the very least, dodging their doomed fate on death row.
Gerry, who visited the grandmother in prison back in 2015, urged the UK government to play their part in getting the 68-year-old back home too.
Speaking to the Mirror in December, the legal whizz said: "There is an apparent move by the Indonesian authorities to abolish the death penalty.
"So they're moving, in 2025, to implement a law that will commute death penalties into prison sentences.
"That law has not yet been enforced, but in the lead up, I think they are negotiating with more than one country about the return of people from overseas."
Gerry explained that if the huge changes were made to legislation, Sandiford's death sentence could become a life-term instead, as she has got through over ten years with good behaviour.
Lawyers could then argue that the former legal secretary should be allowed to return to the UK.
After touching down on home turf, she could walk free due to all the time she has served in prison in Indonesia.
"Lindsay is someone who was compelled to commit a crime and she assisted the authorities so she helped identify those who were criminally responsible," the human rights barrister said.
"So it seems to me she is the next person to be allowed to go home, this time to Britain. I think Indonesia is coming out of this well, recognising the modern world and moving forward.
"The real question is, what are the Foreign Office doing now in Britain? What are they doing?
"She's a British citizen who has served far more than she would serve in England and Wales whose position as a coerced defender has not been properly investigated as far as we can tell.
"We also know from previous reports she has suffered significant ill health which would be treated if she continued her imprisonment in England."
Gerry helped Mary Jane Veloso, 40, escape the firing squad and gain her freedom in December, 15 years after the Filipino maid was imprisoned on similar charges to Sandiford.
Like the grandmother, Veloso claimed she was deceived into acting as a drug courier who had 2.6kg of heroin, as she alleged that a recruiter had promised her a job abroad.
Her release came after the five remaining members of the 'Bali Nine' drug ring were allowed to return to Australia, which also provided fresh hope to Sandiford's case.
Topics: Drugs, Crime, UK News, World News, Death Row
Olivia Burke