Death Row Gran to Fly Home to UK After Cheating Firing Squad
Lindsay Sandiford is set to board a flight from Bali to the UK today after spending 13 years on death row for smuggling cocaine. The 69-year-old gran and former legal secretary was sentenced to death in 2013 but has now been spared execution.
Sandiford was given a UK-funded plane ticket worth £600 for her journey. She will have a brief layover before arriving at London Heathrow Airport after a 20-hour flight.
"Lindsay is extremely unwell. She is desperate to get home and to be with her family. More than a decade in one of the world's worst prisons has taken its toll on her and she wants nothing more than to get back to the UK."
She is scheduled to leave Kerobokan prison alongside Shahab Shahabadi, a fellow UK national serving a life sentence for drug offenses since 2014. They will be taken by car to Denpasar International Airport, where they will be handed over to the UK Ambassador, Dominic Jermey.
Before departure, the two will face the media one last time, escorted by British officials.
Key Points
- Lindsay Sandiford sentenced to death in 2013 for cocaine smuggling.
- Spent 13 years on death row in one of Indonesia's harshest prisons.
- Now returning to the UK with assistance from British authorities.
- Traveling with Shahab Shahabadi, a UK national serving life for drug offenses.
- Arrival expected at London Heathrow after a 20-hour flight with a stopover.
Author's summary: After 13 years on death row for drug smuggling, Lindsay Sandiford is finally returning to the UK, marking a hopeful end to a harsh prison ordeal.