Donna Nelson thought she had found the perfect match online — a Nigerian man who owned a sprawling global fashion business, appeared to have a good background and displayed a caring personality.
But the 58-year-old grandmother of Aboriginal Australian descent says her life was turned upside down when she learned that the man she was falling for had tricked her into smuggling 2 kilograms of methamphetamine into Japan.
That's the case Nelson is pleading before the Chiba District Court, which is weighing whether she is guilty of drug smuggling or merely a victim of an elaborate romance scam. If found guilty, she may be sentenced to prison and a hefty fine, with the prosecutors seeking 10 years of imprisonment and a ¥3 million ($20,000) penalty.
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