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The daughters of a Perth grandmother convicted of drug smuggling in Japan say their mother is a victim.
Donna Nelson, 58, was jailed for six years after pleading guilty to smuggling 2 kilograms of methamphetamine hidden in a suitcase in 2022.
“She’s a victim of a crime, not a criminal,” Nelson’s daughter Crystal Hiller told the court.
“She’s always been against drugs.”
Nelson has always maintained her innocence, saying she was the victim of an online romance scam.
She said she received the suitcase from a male acquaintance she met on social media in 2020 and took it from Laos to Tokyo as instructed.
She was supposed to meet the man in Japan, but he never showed up, according to prosecutors.
She was arrested at the airport and charged with violating Japan’s dope control and customs laws.
The local community leader and former WA Greens candidate has been in custody for nearly two years since his arrest.
“As she was leaving, the only thing she was crying about was, ‘But my grandchildren.’ I know it’s really hard for her to think about her grandchildren growing up,” Hiller said.
“She was duped and didn’t know there were drugs in the bag her partner asked her to take to Japan.”
A panel of three professional judges and six members of the public found the mother of five guilty of drug smuggling.
The court found that “it may be presumed that the accused had suspicions that the suitcase had something illegal” inside.
The senior judge said almost 2 kilograms of methamphetamine was concealed in a sophisticated manner and while Nelson was a “peripheral participant” she “played an imperative and substantial role” in the drug smuggling operation.
“I believe this is a very unreasonable decision,” said Nelson’s defense attorney Rie Nishida.
“We need to talk to Donna, but we’re going to fight to the end until she gets her freedom.
Justin Hayhurst, Australia’s ambassador to Japan, was also in court.
“The Australian Government has been here throughout this process to provide consular support to Ms Nelson and her family and we will continue to provide that support,” Hayhurst said.
The case also attracted interest from Japanese citizens.
“I think they just punish carelessness too often and that’s the problem with this country, I believe,” said one local resident.
Early this morning, Nelson’s eldest daughter and her granddaughter visited her at Chiba Prison, hoping for a positive outcome.
“I woke up today with a sense of peace and that everything is going to be okay, I’m just really hopeful for the outcome that we want,” Crystal said.
Defense attorneys have requested a jail visit with Nelson tonight as they review sentencing details.
Her sentence was reduced due to time already spent behind bars, meaning she still has four years and 10 months left in prison.
She will also have to pay a $10,000 fine.
The 58-year-old has 14 days from tomorrow to lodge an appeal.
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