SA woman gets life sentence reduced in Thailand

A woman from George in the Western Cape who was sentenced to life imprisonment on drug charges in Thailand, has had her sentence reduced to just over 33 years.

The appeal court in Koh Samui heard the matter of 23-year-old Ashley Oosthuizen.

She was convicted on the drug charges last year.

Oosthuizen was teaching English in the country before working at a restaurant that her boyfriend, an alleged drug trafficker, owned.

Oosthuizen was arrested in a police sting after signing for a package of drugs for her boyfriend, who has managed to evade police.

She was imprisoned in 2020 and received the death penalty which was commuted to a life sentence.

Her mother, Lynn Blignaut, says they have 30 days to appeal, and hope that Oosthuizen will be acquitted.

DIRCO

In February, the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (Dirco) said it is aware of Oosthuizen’s imprisonment.

Dirco spokesperson Clayson Monyela said  the department as well as the South African embassy in Bangkok are providing Oosthuizen and her family with consular assistance.

A petition to help free Oosthuizen gained momentum under the hashtag FreeAshley after her plight came to light.

In social media posts, her friends and family claim Ashley was wrongly imprisoned, and instead her boyfriend at the time, who allegedly fled Thailand and is back in his home country of the United States, should be in prison.

A post purportedly written by her boyfriend has circulated where he admitted to being a drug smuggler and claimed Ashley was innocent.

In a statement, Dirco said government is not in a position to intervene in any legal aspects, court hearings and judicial processes in a foreign country.

VIDEO: In February, Family of Western Cape woman jailed in Thailand for drugs to fight for her release: