Cocaine Cassie ‘walks free from jail’
Australia's convicted drug smuggler 'Cocaine Cassie' has reportedly been released from prison in Bogota, Colombia and given a tell-all interview.
Sainsbury has spoken to 60 Minutes, in an interview set to air on Sunday night.
In a teaser trailer of the episode, she said she has changed and grown up as a person.
"I can say I grew as a person, I've grown up alot," she said.
"I learnt a lot about myself, I learnt alot about people, I learnt how to analyse people better and I've learnt not to trust people so much."
The former South Australian-based woman told the program it had been "a massive learning curve".
But she would not change what has happened.
"Everything that I've been through in prison, everything that I've learnt ... I wouldn't change it.
It's made me a stronger person, it's made me the person I am today."
It is not clear how or when she was officially released from jail.
During her time behind bars, Sainsbury's relationship with her fiancee Scott Broadbridge broke down, and the two went their separate ways.
She then struck up a new relationship and got engaged to her fellow female inmate Joslianinyer Pico.
The loved-up pair shared photos of each other together on social media.
It's unclear what the status of their relationship is now after Sainsbury has left the jail.
Sainsbury was at the tail-end of a three year minimum term for trying to smuggle 5.8kg of cocaine from Colombia in April, 2017.
She was arrested at El Dorado airport in Bogota.
Despite leaving prison, she still won't be able to leave Colombia, with airports shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Sainsbury appeared to be in a hotel room when she did the TV interview.
She was being held at El Buen Pastor women's prison, where prison riots erupted last month as prisoners called on authorities to do more to protect them against the coronavirus pandemic.
Dramatic video obtained by News Corp Australia from inside the jail showed the scene at Sainsbury's cell block.
Inmates scream "freedom" while banging on the cell bars.
An inmate at El Buen Pastor said the riots lasted for three hours.
"The protest broke out around 9pm and women starting burning mattresses and blankets and the whole place filled with smoke," said the inmate. She did not wish to be named because she was communicating on a contraband mobile phone.
Another inmate said from inside the jail: "It's bad and every day is worse.
"They won't let us go to the dispensary. They stop us going anywhere. And to make sure we don't say anything they tear gas us.
"There's always a tension as there's no food and the tiny bit they do give us is so horrible its like we're caged dogs," she went on to say. "It's crazy."
