LONDON—A British woman who was imprisoned in Egypt because she brought hundreds of painkillers into the country has reportedly lost an appeal against her conviction.
Laura Plummer, 34, from Hull in northeast England, was sentenced to three years in prison for carrying 290 prescription Tramadol tablets in her suitcase in late 2017.
She was visiting her Egyptian husband, Omar, to take a two-week break near a Red Sea resort.
Plummer says the tablets were for his severe back pain.
Tramadol is an opioid available in Britain as a prescription medication, but it is a controlled drug in Egypt. It is used by some as a substitute for heroin. Plummer claimed that she didn’t know Tramadol was controlled in Egypt.
Plummer told The Sun: “I thought the appeal judges would see sense and realize I couldn’t have known the tablets were banned. It’s just so absurd.
“I hate it. I hate it so much. I just want to come home. What don’t these people get? I wonder if I’ve died and this is hell.
Ignorance of the Law Not a Defense
Britain’s Foreign Office and Plummer’s tour operator submitted paperwork to the court that they said demonstrated Plummer had no way to know the medication was banned, including evidence that an Egyptian website listing prohibited items was not up-to-date.But the court said ignorance of the law could not be considered a defense, and upheld the original court’s decision.
Plummer’s mother Roberta Synclair told The Sun, “We’re disappointed, but not surprised. Each time we come to Egypt we prepare for the worst. Anything else is a bonus.”
Another appeal is possible but may be months away.
Lawyer Mohamed Osman said the failed appeal could be better for Plummer over the long term.
Osman told The Sun, “If the judge had accepted the appeal, he would have returned the criminal case back to the criminal court and Laura would have been starting again from the beginning.”
Plummer is reported to have brought 29 strips of Tramadol, each containing 10 tablets, plus some Naproxen.
At the time of Plummer’s arrest, her brother James said the situation had been “blown out of proportion.”
“She has a phobia of using anybody else’s toilet, so let alone sharing a toilet and a floor with everybody else. That will be awful for her, it’ll be traumatizing.”
He added, “It’s awful for Laura. ... She’s not a tough person at all. She’s only small.”