13 jan 2006
HOLIDAY snap ... Malcolm McCauley and Schapelle Corby in the Bali jail.
|
CONVICTED drug smuggler Schapelle Corby has been cleared of any link to the Adelaide man facing drug charges with whom she was photographed in Bali's Kerobokan Prison.
Breaking his silence, the man in the controversial photos Malcolm McCauley, 60 said he had visited Corby twice last year in Bali, but only as a tourist offering support during her trial.
"A mate and I were in Bali, and we thought we'd go have a looksee in court," Mr McCauley said at his Adelaide home yesterday. "She's high profile, and she's an Aussie, that's why we and a lot of others were interested in it.
"Her sister and mother thanked us for being there, like they were doing with a lot of groups."
Mr McCauley said the first time he met Corby, 28, was at her court hearing in May. Corby's mother introduced him while she was in the holding cell at the court before inviting him to visit Corby in Kerobokan Prison the following day.
"We asked if we could sneak some photos, so we did," Mr McCauley said. The photos were taken at an empty fish pond at the prison.
The discovery of the photographs cast doubt on Corby's claims she had no links to drugs. Prosecutors planned to use the photos to argue for an increase in her 15-year sentence for trying to smuggle 4kg of marijuana from Australia to Bali.
Mr McCauley's version backs the story Corby's mother Rosleigh Rose gave when news of the photographs emerged on December 10. Mr McCauley has appeared in an Adelaide Magistrate's Court charged with taking part in the sale of a controlled substance between November 19 and November 25. Police allegedly found 15kg of cannabis and $60,000 cash at his home.
NOTE'S existence confirmed ... the letter sent by Schapelle Corby to Malcolm McCauley's grand daughter, Kaitlin.
|
SPECIAL caption ... on the back of a photo Schapelle Corby sent to Kaitlin, she gave her this advice.
|
|