Kim Hall was arrested after being stopped in an airport in Chicago in August(Image: Cook County Sherrif's office)

Brit beautician who faces 60 years in US jail for 'smuggling cocaine' breaks her silence

Kim Hall believed she was carrying two bags of "cash" to the UK and was stunned when Homeland Security investigators found 43kg of cocaine in the suitcases instead

by · The Mirror

A young Brit who faces 60 years in a US jail for "drug smuggling" claimed she believed she was carrying two bags of "cash" to the UK from Mexico.

But Kim Hall, 28, was stunned when Homeland Security investigators found 43kg of cocaine in her two suitcases. They stopped her at Chicago's O'Hare airport as she prepared to board a connecting flight to Manchester on August 18 and, after further inspection, detained Hall.

She now faces 60 years in jail and will appear in a US court today. However, the beautician, from Middlesbrough, Teesside, claims she agreed to bring two suitcases home for a pair of British men under the belief the bags contained only cash.

She insists she was forced to carry the bags at gunpoint, after being offered the free holiday to Mexico by the two men she befriended on an earlier break to Portugal - who said they had real estate interests in Central America.

"I'm not a bad person. I've never been in trouble in my life and I'm not guilty of what they are accusing me of. They held a gun to my head and threatened to shoot me," Ms Hall said.

Pictured with her mum Tracy, Ms Hall, 28, shared her agony in a tell-all interview( Image: Facebook)
The beautician, from Middlesbrough, faces up to 60 years in prison( Image: Facebook)

When her week-long trip to Cancun was coming to an end, Ms Hall claimed the men asked her to take two suitcases back with her, which they said contained $250,000 (£195,000) in cash.

"I agreed to it because there was no reason not to. It was just money and I didn't see anything wrong in it," the beautician told The Sun. The beautician claimed she missed her flight due to a mix up with timings, after which point one of the men held a gun to her head and threatened her.

And when Ms Hall finally caught a flight home, she landed at Chicago's O'Hare airport for a connection, which is when officials carried out a random bag check as they were suspicious of her having two suitcases.

The young woman collapsed in tears as she was handcuffed and taken to prison. Ms Hall is now on house arrest and is only allowed out two days a week, with two electronic tags attached to her. Her father John Hall, 59, previously defended his daughter, saying all she is guilty of is "stupidity and naivety".