Sydenham: Mitzie Graham arrested over cocaine in Jamaica

Friends and family of 53-year-old Mitzie Graham claim she is in “shock and disbelief” after her arrest for allegedly attempting to smuggle cocaine to London.

They have staged two protests in George Street, Lewisham, and are planning a third.

They claim she was tricked into carrying tins of milkshake-type drink power in her suitcase and that the woman who asked her to do it has since been secretly recorded admitting the tins were actually hers.

The British government says it cannot intervene in Mitzie’s situation because despite living in south London, she is a Jamaican citizen.

On January 18, the Jamaican Observer reported that a woman has been arrested at Norman Manley International Airport as she tried to board a flight to London.

The news service reported that officials found 4.8 kilogrammes of cocaine with a street value of more than $20million (Jamaican) – or roughly £114,000 – in tins of Lasco drink powder.

Mitzie Graham's friends and family insist she is innocent. Her sister Karlene claims she has a recording of Mitzie's friend admitting the tins of Lasco were hers, and she asked Mitzie to carry them (Image: Gwenton Sloley)

Mitzie’s sister Karlene Watson, who lives in Sydenham, has named her as the arrested woman and set up an online crowd-funding appeal, which includes a first-person account attributed to Mitzie.

“A close long-term friend of mine, whom I trusted, requested that I bring back some Lasco for her,” Mitzie is quoted as saying.

“Things took a sudden turn when Jamaican authorities pounced upon me and advised that I would be detained for carrying illegal Class A drugs. I was in utter disbelief, shock and confusion.

“When presented with the evidence, my heart sank and I just remember cold sweats taking over my body. I just blanked out.”

In a statement on a fundraising webpage, Mitzie Graham said she was left 'in utter disbelief, shock and confusion' by her arrest (Image: Karlene Watson)

Karlene said her sister was a single mother who had travelled to Jamaica for Christmas to visit her older son, who has been left wheelchair-bound after an accident.

She said Mitzie was a generous person who often offered to bring Jamaican treats back to the UK for friends.

“I voice-noted her in Jamaica,” said Karlene. “I said, ‘Don’t carry anything for anybody. Nothing at all’. I saw that she read that.

“But she’s not 100% clicking because of her son’s accident. She’s been a little slow. It’s like a shock she got from it.”

Karleen Watson, from Sydenham, said she was worried for her sister Mitzie's health in prison in Jamaica, as she is a diabetic who requires multiple insulin injections per day (Image: Karlene Watson)

Late on the night Mitzie was due to have flown back, said Karlene, she received a series of calls from Mitzie’s son in Jamaica.

“The amount he was ringing, I thought, this looks like something is wrong,” she recalled.

“When I heard him say they found cocaine in her suitcase, I screamed out. I started ringing everybody, waking up everybody.”

When Mitzie was finally able to call her from the jail, Karlene alleged, she said: “I’m not going to make it. I feel like I’m dead.”

Karlene said she is worried about her sister’s safety behind bars.

“She is diabetic and she has to take injections four times a day – insulin,” she said.

In Mitzie’s statement on the fundraising webpage, she says: “I am in urgent need of financial and medical assistance, in order to secure a robust legal defence and medical care.”

So far, just over £2,800 has been raised.

Protesters have repeatedly gathered in Lewisham since Mitzie Graham's arrest in Jamaica, waving signs that say 'Free Mitzie' and 'Justice for Mitzie' (Image: Gwenton Sloley)

In the meantime, said Karlene, she has secretly recorded a phone call with the friend who allegedly asked Mitzie to carry the Lasco - also a south London resident.

"She said she asked Mitzie to carry the Lasco, bread and buns," claimed Karlene. 

"I don't know why the police in Jamaica don't contact the law over here to get this girl arrested."

Protests since Mitzie’s arrest have included a march in Lewisham, with attendees waving placards that said “Free Mitzie” and “Justice for Mitzie”.

The Foreign Office said it could not assist as Mitzie was not a British citizen.

The News Shopper contacted the Jamaica Constabulary Force, the Jamaica Information Service and Jamaica’s Ministry of National Security. None responded.