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A Brits dream holiday ended in a nightmare after allegedly smuggling £15m worth of cocaine in her suitcases from the UK to Mexico but claims she believed she was carrying cash.
Kim Hall, 28, is now facing 60 years in a US prison but the terrified beautician insists she is innocent and has spoken about her harrowing ordeal at being held at gunpoint.
Kim was caught in the act at Chicago’s O’Hare airport where she was due to get on her connecting flight home to Manchester on August 18. Here Homeland Security investigators found 43kg of cocaine in her two suitcases worth an eye watering £15m.
She was detained in Cook County Sheriff’s Office where she could face up to 60 years in American jail, previous inmates have included the notorious Al Capone.
In Illinois, Class X drug trafficking charges can result in a sentence of between 15 and 60 years in jail, in addition to a fine of up to $500,000.
But Kim, from Middleborough, claims two men forced her to smuggle the drugs after offering her a free trip to Cancun and then threatening her once she arrived.
Towards the end of her week-long dream holiday, the men asked her to take two suitcases home with her, which they said were full of $250,000 in cash.
Speaking to The Sun Kim said: “They held a gun to my head and threatened to shoot me.
“He said, ‘I’ll f***ing shoot you.’ It was the most frightening thing I’ve ever experienced.
“I was screaming at them to let me go. I thought, I’m going to end up dead if I don’t carry this money.
“I couldn’t breathe and began having a panic attack. When the full realisation of what it all meant hit me, I cried and cried.”
Her family back home in the UK say “the only thing she’s guilty of is being stupid and being naive”.
Dad John, 59, has blasted the UK Government for their lack of support.
“When a British national is in trouble abroad, your first move is to phone the British Embassy and you expect back-up.
“I said, ‘She desperately needs help.’ I explained all this to them and all they did was give me a list of charities to contact.
“Nobody helped. I’m disgusted with the British Government.”
Kim is now on house arrest and is allowed out two days a week but has to wear two electronic tags.
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