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BREAKING Brit drug mule gran Lindsay Sandiford lands at Heathrow after Indonesia jail launch

A grandmother who endured 13 years on Death Row in Indonesia has touched down at Heathrow Airport after being released from prison in Indonesia.

Lindsay Sandiford, 69, was pictured for the first time since leaving jail on Thursday and was was sent home with a £600 ticket under an agreement reached with the Indonesian government.

She was pictured in a wheelchair hiding her face before boarding their flight flanked by British officials. The legal secretary landed London Heathrow Airport after a 20-hour journey. The grandmother received a death sentence in 2013 after authorities discovered cocaine valued at $2.14million (£1.7million) concealed in her suitcase’s false bottom upon her arrival from Thailand the previous year.



Lindsay Sandiford, a British citizen on death row, covers their face while attending a handover ceremony
Lindsay Sandiford covers their face while attending a handover ceremony

A revised laws meant Sandiford – who had demonstrated exemplary conduct during her decade-plus imprisonment – became a prime candidate for release.

A source told the Mirror: “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.”

Sources in Indonesia say Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Home Secretary Yvette Cooper made a personal plea to the Indonesian authorities for Sandiford’s return due to her ill health.

It is understood Foreign Office officials have been working on the deal for more than 18 months, making frequent visits to see her in prison.



The Brit gran is said to be unwell and in a wheelchair
The Brit gran is said to be unwell and in a wheelchair

Pastor Christine Buckingham – who visited Sandiford in Kerobokan jail last week – told the Mirror: “She is in extremely ill health and she’s very keen to get back and be with her family after these 13 years. She wants to get home and enjoy some creature comforts.”

Asked what she intends to do when she touches down in the UK, Ms Buckingham said: “We’re deeply grateful to the Indonesian Government and of course the British Government for working this out together.

“We look forward to her getting home now. She’s very unwell. The most important thing is that she gets home, we need her to be checked medically and then the plan is that she says she will spend as much time as she can with her family.”

She was released alongside fellow UK national Shahab Shahabadi, 35, who was detained in June 2014 and was serving a life sentence for drug offences.

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