‘I thought I would spend the rest of my life in prison’, cries grandmother tricked by online message into becoming a drug mule

A GRANDMA has told how she was tricked into becoming a drug mule after traveling thousands of miles for love.

Suzana Thayer was forced to endure nine grueling months in Hong Kong prison after being detained on drug smuggling charges while on her way to meet the “man of her dreams” in Ethiopia.

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“I thought I would spend the rest of my life in prison and die there,” said Thayer, who is from Ontario. Canadacounted TVC News in 2023.

“I’m glad I can sit here today.”

It all started when Thayer was the victim of a romance scam that saw her cheated out of more than $200,000.

As part of her search for love, Thayer booked an all-expenses-paid trip to Ethiopia to meet the “man of her dreams” who she had been chatting with online, said her daughter, Angela.

However, it all ended with her being sent to prison after customs officers found cocaine hidden in clothing buttons that were stuffed in her suitcase.

Thayer has always maintained his innocence, saying the clothes were a gift from the man who paid for his tickets to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

The man never showed up, but he had the gifts delivered to Thayer and told him he would meet her in Hong Kong.

But when she landed at Hong Kong airport, she was met by customs agents who discovered the drugs.

Authorities threw a hood over her head and arrested Thayer, taking her to a maximum security center for women. prison.

“I felt like a murderer. I wanted to pass out. And I think they literally held me because my legs turned to jelly. I couldn’t believe it,” she said.

In her interrogation, Thayer accused authorities of denying her a lawyer and coercing her into admitting guilt.

“They wore me down for three days before the interrogation,” she said.

“I was handcuffed for three days, but I was surprised they took them off for the video interrogation.”

While in prisonThayer said he repeatedly asked to speak to the Canadian consulate in Hong Kong but was denied.

She claimed that medications she needed for her heart problems were also withheld.

“At one point, when they were interrogating me, just before they took me to the hospital, I looked at the interrogator and said ‘this is torture’. He literally smiled at me and said ‘yes it is’.

Cyber ​​Expert Advice on How to Spot a Romance Scam

A cyber expert with knowledge of romance scams spoke to The US Sun and warned users of warning signs to watch out for. Roger Grimes, defense evangelist at cyber firm KnowBe4, listed eight key questions you should ask yourself:

• Is the person trying to get you off the dating site and onto an unmonitored app?
• Are they asking too many questions before revealing information about themselves? This could be an attempt to establish common ground and build trust.
• Are they avoiding phone calls and video chats and making excuses?
• Do they say they travel a lot or are not in the same country? This is often a profitable part of the scam as they need money.
• Have you ever said that you are going to travel on a certain day and something unexpected happens, so you need money to get there?
• Do they ask for deep, dark secrets or incriminating or nude photos? This could be used for blackmail later on.
• Have they said they were scammed before? Sometimes this is a strategy to build trust and convince you that they are not scammers.
• Do they have a sob story? Like if your spouse died suddenly or left unjustly? Or are they left with kids or huge bills to pay?

Read more here.

“It was humiliating and cruel,” said Thayer. “You just want to crawl into a corner and cry, and that’s basically what I did. I just cowered in a corner.”

After CTV reported the story, officials at the Hong Kong Department of Justice were informed of Thayer’s situation.

“All I can conclude is that they watched your show,” said Michael ArthurThayer’s lawyer.

“It’s highly unusual for them to drop a case. But I think it put pressure on them.”

She finally reunited with her family at Pearson Airport in Toronto.

Thayer said he is done with online dating, but still hopes to find true love.

“You have nothing if you don’t have love,” she said.

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