Two British nationals convicted for a major cocaine smuggling plot in Bali have been photographed checking in at a Business Class priority desk to fly home, just four months after being jailed and spared the firing squad.
From Death Row to Departure Lounge
An exclusive photograph obtained by the Mirror shows Lisa Stocker, 40, and her partner, Jon Collyer, 39, at the premium counter in Denpasar International Airport on December 30. This was merely four months after they were sentenced for their part in a plot to smuggle cocaine worth £300,000 onto the Indonesian island.
Along with a third accomplice, Phineas Float, 31, the pair had faced the very real possibility of execution under Indonesia's notoriously strict drug laws. However, in a surprising turn in August, a judge at Denpasar Central Court chose not to impose the death penalty after they admitted the smuggling charges.
A Remarkably Short Sentence
Instead of facing a firing squad, Stocker and Collyer were initially given prison terms of just one year. These sentences were then slashed even further under Indonesian laws that allow reductions to mark Christmas and an independence day holiday.
This legal leniency meant they were free to board Qatar Airways flight QR963 from Bali to Doha at 6.50pm on Tuesday, December 30, connecting onwards to the UK. If they travelled in business class, the seats would have cost a minimum of £2,000 each.
A source told the Mirror: “It’s staggering they have been allowed to leave Bali already, given its stance on drug crime. But to see them checking into the premium counter is breathtaking. Whichever cabin they ended up in, they can consider it an incredible Christmas gift to have been released so early.”
The Angel Delight Cocaine Plot
The couple's ordeal began on February 1 when they were arrested at Bali's international airport after a routine X-ray detected suspicious packages in their luggage. Authorities found 992 grams of cocaine stashed inside 17 packets of Angel Delight dessert mix.
Stocker and Collyer had travelled from the UK to Bali via Qatar. They initially told police they were unaware of the drugs, believing they were simply delivering British treats to a friend.
Following their arrest, the pair turned informants for the Indonesian police. They agreed to help lure their accomplice, Phineas Float, to an ambush. Float was arrested on February 3 when he arrived at the Grand Mas Airport Hotel car park to collect the haul.
The court heard that Float had agreed to participate in the plot for a “reward” of just 500,000 Indonesian Rupiah, equivalent to approximately £22.50.
The Mirror understands that Float was released from prison on December 5, held in a detention centre, and then deported back to Britain on December 10.
A Pattern of Repatriation
The release and deportation of Stocker and Collyer follows another high-profile case. In October, Brit Lindsay Sandiford, 69, was freed after 13 years on death row in Bali's notorious Kerobokan prison. She had been caught with £1.6 million worth of cocaine in 2012.
Her release was secured through a bilateral agreement negotiated by Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper. Sandiford was repatriated alongside another British national, Shahab Shahabadi, 35, who had been serving a life sentence since 2014.
An FCDO spokesperson confirmed the recent returns, stating: “Three British nationals who were detained in Indonesia have now returned to the UK.” The Foreign Office declined to comment further on the specific circumstances of Stocker and Collyer's return.
The swift departure of the convicted drug mules marks a dramatic conclusion to a case that highlights both the severe penalties for drug trafficking in Indonesia and the occasional, remarkable acts of judicial clemency that can follow.
