(4 Dec 2024)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Chiba City, Japan - 4 November 2024
1. Donna Nelson’s eldest daughter Kristal Hilaire arriving
2. SOUNDBITE (English) Kristal Hilaire, Donna Nelson’s eldest daughter:
“No matter what, we will be bringing mum home soon. Either our fight ends today or we going to have to fight a little bit more for a little bit longer. I feel confident and positive and I’m going in there with strength on my face for my mum.”
3. Court sign
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Kristal Hilaire, Donna Nelson’s eldest daughter:
“She looked positive, she’s been praying, she feels all the strength from back home as well. So yes, she was doing well this morning.”
5. Pan down of court building
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Kristal Hilaire, Donna Nelson’s eldest daughter:
“It’s been a long 23 months. And all of it comes down to this last hour.”
7. Hilaire entering court building
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Rie Nishida, defence lawyer:
(Reporter asks if convicted, would defendant appeal)
“Yes, of course. We believe the judges will reach the truth. At the end of the day."
9. SOUNDBITE (English), Rie Nishida, defence lawyer:
“But if there is any miscarriage of justice, we are going to fight on until the end. That means until she gets freedom.”
10. Nishida entering court
STORYLINE:
The family members of an Australian accused of smuggling amphetamines into Japan were in court for the verdict hearing on Wednesday.
Donna Nelson, the accused, was arrested at Japan’s Narita International Airport just outside Tokyo when customs officials found about 2 kilograms (4.4 pounds) of stimulants, or phenylaminopropane, hidden in a double-bottom suitcase she was carrying.
Nelson say's she is innocent and that she was tricked into carrying them as part of an online romance scam.
“No matter what, we will be bringing mum home soon. Either our fight ends today or we going to have to fight a little bit more for a little bit longer. I feel confident and positive," Kristal Hilaire, Donna Nelson’s eldest daughter, told the media outside court.
The defense lawyer Rie Nishida said if Nelson is convicted, the defense team will appeal.
“We are going to fight on until the end. That means until she gets freedom,” said Nishida.
The 58-year-old said she received the suitcase from an acquaintance of a man she met on social media in 2020, and brought it from Laos to Tokyo as instructed.
She was supposed to meet up with the man in Japan but he never showed up, according to prosecutors.
She was arrested on the spot and later charged with violating the stimulants control and customs laws. She has been in custody for nearly two years.
AP Video shot by Mayuko Ono
===========================================================
Clients are reminded to adhere to all listed restrictions and to check the terms of their licence agreements. For further assistance, please contact the AP Archive on: Tel +44(0)2074827482 Email: info@aparchive.com.
Find out more about AP Archive: [ Ссылка ]
Twitter: [ Ссылка ]
Facebook: [ Ссылка ]
Instagram: [ Ссылка ]
You can license this story through AP Archive: [ Ссылка ]
