Adelaide’s “Cocaine Cassie” released from Colombian jail
Convicted South Australian drug smuggler Cassie Sainsbury has been released from a Colombian prison after serving half of her six-year sentence.
Cassie Sainsbury at a Colombia court in 2017. Photo: AP/Fernando Vergara
Sainsbury, from Adelaide, walked free from El Buen Pastor women’s prison on Friday.
As part of her parole conditions, the 22-year-old must remain in Colombia for another 27 months, according to Nine News.
Sainsbury was convicted for attempting to smuggle 5.8kg of cocaine out of Colombia, after being arrested at a Bogota airport when the drug was found packaged in 18 headphone boxes in her suitcase.
Her release follows Colombia’s President Ivan Duque on Wednesday ordering the “humanitarian” release of more than 4000 prisoners to house arrest, in an effort to reduce overcrowding and prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
Agence France-Presse reported that two prisoners have died from COVID-19 in the South American country.
Sainsbury said the experience made her grow as a person and she learnt a lot about herself.
“I learned a lot about people, I’ve learned how to analyse people better,” she said in a 60 Minutes interview extract posted online by Nine News.
“I’ve learned not to trust people so much.
“It’s been definitely a massive learning curve but, at the same time, everything that I’ve been through in prison, everything that I learnt I wouldn’t change it because it’s made me a stronger person it’s made me who I am today.”
-with AAP
