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Girls guilty in Ghana drugs case | Girls guilty in Ghana drugs case |
(29 minutes later) | |
Two British 16-year-old girls have been found guilty of trying to smuggle cocaine from Ghana to the UK. | Two British 16-year-old girls have been found guilty of trying to smuggle cocaine from Ghana to the UK. |
Yasemin Vatansever and Yatunde Diya, both of north London, were arrested at an airport in Accra on 2 July. | Yasemin Vatansever and Yatunde Diya, both of north London, were arrested at an airport in Accra on 2 July. |
They denied the charge of attempting to smuggle more than 6kg (13lbs) of the drug on a BA flight to London. | |
The girls were found guilty by a Ghanaian court and could face up to three years in a juvenile detention facility when sentenced on 5 December. | |
The BBC's Will Ross in Accra said the girls will appeal against the verdict. | The BBC's Will Ross in Accra said the girls will appeal against the verdict. |
Laptop bags | Laptop bags |
They had told the court they were set up, but the prosecution said they were involved from the start in a plot to smuggle drugs. | |
The girls have already spent nearly five months in custody after they were arrested with laptop bags containing cocaine. | The girls have already spent nearly five months in custody after they were arrested with laptop bags containing cocaine. |
But neither girl remains in custody and left the court after the hearing on Wednesday. | |
They are being tried under Ghana's Juvenile Justice Act which means their trial had to be completed within six months. | They are being tried under Ghana's Juvenile Justice Act which means their trial had to be completed within six months. |
Since British Customs officials started working with their Ghanaian counterparts a year ago drugs with a street value of more than £60m have been intercepted en route from Ghana to Europe. | Since British Customs officials started working with their Ghanaian counterparts a year ago drugs with a street value of more than £60m have been intercepted en route from Ghana to Europe. |