Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2401511/Terrified-stooges-calculated-smugglers-Incredible-account-Ibiza-drug-mules-gave-police-published-IN-FULL-time--judge.html#ixzz2cyrupOIO It has been nearly three weeks since Michaella McCollum Connolly and Melissa Reid were caught at Lima airport carrying £1.5 million of cocaine.
Since then, the case of the ‘Peru Two’ has captured huge interest. Their frightened faces have become familiar across the globe. And the case has divided opinion.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2401511/Terrified-stooges-calculated-smugglers-Incredible-account-Ibiza-drug-mules-gave-police-published-IN-FULL-time--judge.html#ixzz2cysUlKvv
Accused of trafficking drugs out of Peru, the two women, both 20, face sentences of up to 15 years. In the meantime, they are already experiencing the harsh realities of a Peruvian prison, awaiting trial.
Making their statements: In Lima prosecutor's
office, Melissa Reid, left, and Michaella McCollum Connolly check their
testimonies to Peruvian police
But are they, as they claim, naive party girls, innocents ensnared by a ruthless international drugs gang – or did they willingly acquiesce to the smuggling plot, lured by the promise of substantial financial reward?
Ten days after their arrest, the two young women each spent nearly eight hours at the Dirandro police station in Lima making statements.
In them, they chronicled all they say happened from leaving Britain in June, full of youthful expectation about a working holiday in Ibiza, to the moment they were arrested in South America.
The statements were made separately before the chief prosecutor, the police officer in charge of the case, the women’s lawyers and members of their families.
Until today, only sketchy accounts of what happened have emerged. But here, for the first time, The Mail on Sunday publishes their statements in full...
AN INNOCENT SUMMER IN IBIZA?
Melissa: I left Scotland on June 22 and headed to Ibiza, where I planned to stay until the end of October. I worked at a bar called Millennium.Michaella: I left home on June 24 to travel to Ibiza, where I stayed at a hostel. I found a job after four days, at a bar called Ushuia. I worked 14 hours a day. I travelled on my own and met many people (men and women) at a bar near my hostel/apartment.
FATEFUL MEETING AT A DISCOTHEQUE
Handcuffed together: Michaella McCollum
Connolly, left, and Melissa Reid say they were forced by a gang armed
with guns to carry cocaine worth £1.5million through Lima airport
Melissa: On July 21, I went to a discotheque called Sankeys where I met a man with a London accent called Jake. I don’t know his surname. We went to my apartment where we were chatting. He then stood up and went to the bathroom. I could hear him talking on the phone. When he came out, he held me and said he would take me to see his friends. I didn’t feel scared as I knew I had a cellphone and could call my friends in case something went wrong.
Michaella: Five days before leaving Ibiza, I was thinking about going to Barcelona with some friends. Two of those friends knew Jake. I might have met Jake two or three times and spent no longer than 20 minutes with him. He was a taxi driver. I think it was on Saturday June 27 that Jake came by in his car to see me. He asked if I had spoken to our friends because Ben, another friend, had made a reservation to go all together to Barcelona. I tried to reach Ben to see if this was true but couldn’t.
Melissa: Jake told me to pack my things and took my passport. When we got into his car, he pulled out a gun and threatened me. He told me to do as I was told by his friends, otherwise they would kill me. He drove to Ibiza Town and took me to an apartment where a guy named Hector was. They locked me in a room.
Michaella: Jake took me home so I could pack and told me he would pick me up at 9am. We exchanged phone numbers. I got up at 8am and packed. I tried to reach my friends but couldn’t. Jake called and said he would pick me up in ten minutes. He told me he had to go first to pick up a friend, some guy named Christian from Liverpool. He was tall and slim and had some tattoos under his right eye with some tattoos on his neck.
KIDNAPPED AT GUNPOINT
Melissa: Hector came into the room pointing the gun at me and told me to co-operate, otherwise he would kill me. I was held for two nights. On the third day, Hector came with a plane ticket to Madrid and gave me a Blackberry. He told me a guy called Enrique would contact me when I arrived at Madrid airport. Enrique called and told me to meet him in the taxi stop. He told me to get in a car where there were some guys, one of which was called Julio, who I was told later was Peruvian.Michaella: Jake said he had to go to Ibiza Town. I started asking questions about the time of my flight, when we would meet the rest of my friends. He replied: ‘In ten minutes.’ We pulled over and Jake asked me to go with him into one of the apartments. Christian came with us. A Spaniard opened the door. We went in and sat in the living room. Christian and Hector, the guy who opened the door, started chatting in the corridor. They were arguing in Spanish and then I heard a door shut. I realised Christian had left.
Melissa: I was taken to an apartment in Madrid. Enrique pointed the gun at me and told me I was going to travel and bring back some things that some friends of him were to give me. He didn’t specify what kind of things. On Friday, Julio brought a plane ticket to Majorca. Enrique called and told me I would travel there – under permanent watch – where they would be waiting for me.
Michaella: Fifteen minutes after Christian left, a man knocked at the door and brought my suitcase which obviously Jake had given him. I stood up and asked what was going on. Hector grabbed me and sat me down again and then left. I stayed there with the other guy (a Spaniard) for about an hour. He was tall and strong, so I didn’t try to escape. I was scared. After a while Hector came back with another guy he introduced as Enrique.
He told me his friends needed me to do something for them. He pulled from his pocket a photocopy of my passport. He told me to stay quiet, that he would explain everything.
In court: Police escort Melissa Reid, front, and
Michaella McCollum Connolly to a court to be formally charged for drug
trafficking
He took out his BlackBerry and showed me photos of my relatives from social media.
He told me I would travel to Majorca where I would meet some friends of his, and then I would be sent somewhere.
I started to argue and he pulled out a gun and pointed it at my head. I realised I was in trouble. He told me to shut up, saying I would be home in a week. He told me ‘the mafia’ would treat me well if I treated them well and if I did what I was told I would be home in a week.
He told me to wash my face. Enrique asked me if I had any warm clothes because I would need them where I was going. I asked where, but obtained no reply.
He took away my phone and handed me a Blackberry which has a contact already saved in it as LK and this was Enrique’s number. He told me to use the phone only to contact him and not to surf the web.
FORCED TO MEET UP IN MAJORCA
Melissa: When I got to Majorca, I was surprised to find Julio. They held me again. I can’t remember if it was Saturday or Sunday when they took me to the airport where we picked up Michaella McCollum. [This, claim Melissa and Michaella, was their first meeting.] We were taken back to the apartment where we were constantly threatened with guns. Then Julio took us both to a travel agency where they made arrangements for us to travel to Peru.
Emotional: Michaella McCollum Connolly wipes a
tear as she listens to a Peruvian judge hours after they were indicted
on charges of trying to smuggle cocaine out of the country
Michaella: When I arrived in Majorca, I was met at the airport by Melissa Reid and Julio. Melissa told me she was in a similar situation to me, forced to travel to another country. We went to an apartment with five men and a woman. I don’t know their nationalities. On Sunday, Melissa and I went to the beach.
Melissa: Enrique called me and told me a friend of his in Peru would get in touch to give me a package that I was to bring back. They constantly reminded us we would be watched at all times.
Michaella: On Monday Melissa and Julio went to the travel agency. I was taken there by one of the five men who didn’t enter with me. They were arranging everything. We then went back to the apartment. There were guns on top of the table constantly. We didn’t talk much. Melissa and I didn’t know what was going on, we just supported each other. On July 30, Melissa would travel to Lima. We were given some clothes that we were told to wear when travelling.
TWO FRIGHTENED ‘TOURISTS’ IN PERU
Melissa: I travelled from Majorca to Madrid and then to Lima where I was picked up by someone holding a sign with my name on it. I was taken to San Agustin Colonial Hotel in Miraflores.Enrique called me and told me Michaella would be arriving the next day and that we would then travel together to Cusco [a city in south-eastern Peru]. Next day, I was picked up at the hotel and taken to the airport. When I was there, Michaella called me and told me she was at the airport. We met and checked in for the Cusco flight.
Michaella: Julio gave me 500 euros for travel expenses and took me to the airport at 5pm on July 31, 2013. My plane left at 1850 for Madrid, where I would board another one to Peru. Once in Lima, I can’t remember who called who but I met Melissa at the check-in point and took the flight to Cusco. After speaking with Melissa, I was definitely feeling paranoid since we had both been threatened.
Melissa: We were picked up in Cusco by a guy called Americo, who identified himself as a guide. He arranged everything for our four-day tour to Machu Picchu, Sacsay huaman and the Sacred Valley. Enrique was constantly in touch.
Michaella: Melissa had a camera that Enrique had given her. He told her to take many pictures during our tour. We took many pictures of all our activities.
34 PACKAGES WE HAD TO DELIVER
Melissa: On Monday August 5, we returned to Lima where we took a tour of the city from 2pm to 5pm. I was called by Enrique who gave me a phone number and told me to contact someone called Pepe Luis. I was with Michaella who was called by Enrique 20 minutes later. He asked to speak to me and told me I was to meet his friend. I left the hotel and turned right, following directions. A man got out of a car and asked me if I was Melissa. He gave me a plastic bag containing small packages which I took back to the hotel. He sent me a message telling me to go out again and fetch another bag which I did.Michaella: Meanwhile, Enrique called me and told me to fetch my suitcase and take it to Melissa’s room, which I did.
Concerns: The girls' lawyer Peter Madden says he fears the girls could be separated once they are taken to prison
Melissa: Back at the hotel, Michaella and me started to suspect we were being used to carry drugs back. Enrique called to give us instructions on how to pack the drugs inside our suitcases. He told us to wrap them with our clothes. I started to cry and told him I couldn’t do it and he threatened us. He said his friends were constantly watching us and we would be killed if we didn’t do exactly as he said. I couldn’t sleep that night.
Michaella: One bag had 16 packages, the other 18. They were wrapped in newspaper. While Enrique was speaking with us, we told him we did not want to go on with this. He told us we had to because his friends were waiting for us downstairs and they would be following us on our way to the airport.
He told us it was a ‘sure thing’, that the packages were a ‘sure thing’, that he had someone, some kind of contact at the airport, and that it was all right, that we would only get caught if we revealed nervousness and that would be our fault.
'RELIEF' OF BEING BUSTED AT AIRPORT
Melissa: Next morning at approximately 4.30am, Enrique called. I suppose to make sure everything was OK.I insisted I couldn’t do it and he threatened me again. At about 5am a guy came for us and took us to the airport.
Michaella: We suspected we were being followed because we were transporting something. We didn’t know what it was though.
Before checking in, we wrapped our suitcases with plastic foil.
Relief: The girls were pictured eating food and looking happy and smiling shortly after they were arrested
We started to feel observed, people were pointing their fingers at us and we feared we were going to be arrested.
Melissa: When we were at the counter to check in, I felt paranoid. I thought everyone was watching us. Michaella put her suitcase on top of the scale.
Michaella: Behind the lady at the counter there was a police officer with a dog. He made some signal to another officer who approached us and held us captive.
Melissa: We were told to follow him. I felt kind of relieved that the police had taken charge of everything. They took us to a room where there was a police officer with a dog and many people who surrounded us. Our suitcases were there and one of the officers ripped open the plastic foil that covered them. They opened my suitcase and asked me if it was mine. I said yes.
Michaella: They found the packages and made some kind of test to one of them which turned out ‘blue’. First there were two people but the room soon filled up with more people. They then checked my suitcase, handcuffed us and took us to the second floor for investigation.
Melissa: There were about eight or nine people dressed as civilians. One of them was filming with a camera. They opened the packages but didn’t show us the cocaine in them.
We were handcuffed, taken to the second floor where the police opened the suitcases and the packages where the drugs were, and there’s where I signed the documents. I want to say I had no intention to come to Peru.
As a matter of fact I was forced to come to Peru. I did not know I was transporting drugs, I was not completely sure. I would have preferred that this had not happened.
After making their statements, the two women were asked separately by Peruvian investigators if, prior to their arrest, they had ‘any chance to inform the Spanish or Peruvian police or communicate with your relatives about this situation?’
Melissa: No.
Michaella: There were opportunities, yes, at the airport, during the tours we made, when some police officers asked us to take a picture with them, but we were too scared because if we told the police we would be called to testify and they had pictures of my family and a photocopy of my passport.
We didn’t know they would be waiting for us after talking to the police.
Michaella was asked why they ‘appear to be so happy’ in the photo taken with police.
Michaella: A photograph does not necessarily show what you are feeling.
You can smile as a way to hide what you are feeling. Enrique had told us to take pictures of ourselves in a happy attitude.
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