WHEN Donna Nelson met Kelly online, she thought she had found ‘the one'.
Donna, 59, an Indigenous community leader from Perth, , met the man online and over two years their relationship blossomed.
Over the years, the grandmother had heard Kelly discuss his fashion and how he hoped they could build a life together before asking her to visit him in .
Donna, eager to meet her ‘future husband', booked a plane ticket and packed her bags immediately.
While she was expecting her life to change forever, she would have no idea what lay in store for her.
Everything changed when the mother of five had a stop-over in Laos and became ill.
She was forced to pay for a hotel room herself, despite Kelly's previous assurances that he would cover any costs of her trip.
Heartbroken and frustrated, Donna thought about returning home but Kelly convinced her to continue.
“I've cried too much and spent my last to get this room for tonight. If this is how a wife is treated, I don't want to be married,” she reportedly said, as per the ABC.
After convincing Donna to carry on, Kelly informed her that a business associate would meet her in Laos with a suitcase filled with fashion samples for his company to bring to Tokyo.
Thinking nothing of it, Donna agreed to help the man she loved and brought the suitcase with her on her flight.
But when she showed up to the airport, the suitcase was quickly stopped by a custom officer and then searched.
Inside, officials found two kilograms of methamphetamine hidden in a false bottom of the case — and Donna was immediately arrested.
She argued she had no idea about the hidden in the suitcase.
On Trial
“If I had known or even suspectedwere in the suitcase, I would have never agreed to carry it,” she said during her trial.
Donna opened the suitcase when she was at her hotel to inspect it's contents, but only found clothes inside as she had no idea there was a secret compartment.
But Donna's defence of being wasn't enough, especially as her trial took place in Japan, whose justice system boasts a staggering 99 per cent conviction rate.
Her defence team argued she was a victim of a love scam, manipulated by Kelly, who preyed on her vulnerability, but the prosecution painted a different picture.
Instead, they argued Donna ignored the warning signs of Kelly's ‘strange request.'
They sought a ten-year sentence against Donna, citing her decision not to declare the suitcase as hers and her claim that she was travelling for business as reasons to label her “untrustworthy”.
Last year in December, the verdict came through and sentenced Donna to six years in with the 430 days she already spent in solitary confinement deducted from her sentence. She will also need to pay a $10,000 fine.
During her trial, the judge acknowledged Donna has been ‘deceived' by Kelly.
She is the victim of a crime and not a criminal.
Kristal HilaireDonna's Daughter
Donna's five daughters flew to Japan to support her during the trial, and were devastated but resolute, reports MamaMia.
“We cannot say any more about this case at this time as we consider preparing for an appeal, but we are devastated by this verdict and will not stop fighting for our mum,” they said in a statement.
“Family is everything to Mum, and she has been apart from us for too long,” said her daughter Kristal Hilaire.
“As she was leaving, the one thing she cryingly said to me was, ‘But my grandchildren.' I know it's really hard for her thinking of her grandchildren growing up.”
“She is the victim of a and not a criminal,” Hilaire said outside court, as per Nine. “She has always been against drugs.”
While Donna is locked behind bars for 23 and a half hours a day, Kelly is still free.
Not only does nobody know where he is but nobody is looking for him.
Japanese authorities told Donna's daughters it was outside their jurisdiction. Australian also aren't investigating.
Luke McMahon, a lawyer with experience in international cybercrime, is giving free advice to the Nelson family, told Australian Story Kelly would be targeting other vulnerable victims undoubtedly as part of a major crime syndicate.
The family are currently preparing to appeal Donna's case and hope to get her transferred back to Australia while looking for Kelly themselves.
According to her daughter, Ashlee, Donna struggled to find love when her husband left while she was pregnant with her youngest daughter, Shontaye, now 21.
“I think it speaks to the fact that anybody could become a victim if they want love so much and that's what they're focused on,” Kristal said.
