Three British nationals have narrowly avoided facing a firing squad in Bali and are now set to be deported back to the United Kingdom. The group, caught smuggling nearly a kilogram of cocaine hidden inside packets of Angel Delight dessert, have been informed they will be expelled from Indonesia in the coming days.
A Narrow Escape from Indonesia's Harsh Drug Laws
Lisa Stocker, 39, her partner Jonathan Collyer, 39, and accomplice Phineas Float, 31, were sentenced in August this year. They were terrified they would receive the death penalty under Indonesia's notoriously strict anti-narcotics legislation. The trio, all from East Sussex, were apprehended in February after airport X-rays detected suspicious packages in their luggage.
They had transported 992 grams of cocaine, with an estimated street value of £300,000, concealed within 17 sachets of the popular powdered dessert. The court in Denpasar heard that Float had agreed to participate in the plot for a reward of just 500,000 Indonesian Rupiah, equivalent to a mere £22.50.
Cooperation and a Surprising Leniency
Following their arrest at Bali's international airport on 1 February, Stocker and Collyer claimed they were unaware the packages contained drugs, believing they were simply transporting British treats for a friend. The pair then cooperated with authorities, acting as informants to help set up a sting operation.
This led to the arrest of Float on 3 February at the Grand Mas Airport Hotel car park. Prosecutor Made Umbara urged Judge Heriyanti not to impose the ultimate sentence. In a significant display of leniency, the judge sentenced them to one year in prison, accounting for time already served, with deportation to follow.
"The three of them can consider themselves very lucky," a source commented. "Other people have spent years behind bars for similar crimes - some even told that they'd be executed."
Deportation Imminent Amid Wider Context
The group's expected release and deportation next month comes shortly after another high-profile case. In October, British drug smuggler Lindsay Sandiford, 69, was released after 13 years on death row. She was convicted in 2012 for smuggling £1.6 million worth of cocaine.
Her release, alongside fellow Briton Shahab Shahabadi, followed diplomatic efforts by Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper, who secured a bilateral agreement with Indonesia. However, officials indicated Sandiford would still face incarceration in the UK as part of the transfer arrangement.
For Stocker, Collyer, and Float, their ordeal in Bali's squalid prisons is nearing its end. Having confessed to their crime, they are now preparing to return home, having escaped the fate that many others in similar circumstances have not.
