A traveling Australian mother of five is facing execution by bullet to the heart after Taiwanese cops found drugs in her luggage at the Taoyuan International Airport in December.
Debbie Voulgaris, 57, was arrested at Taoyuan International Airport in December after the drugs were allegedly found in black plastic bags inside her bags.
Taiwanese police claim Voulgaris was caught with 15 pounds of the drug, which she immediately and "vehemently denied" having any knowledge of, according to The Daily Mail.
She later told authorities her ex-husband, John, was behind the scheme.
Leon Huang, a lawyer representing Voulgaris, said it was "essential" that her ex take the stand, as he was the only person who could confirm her story.
Despite numerous repeal attempts, capital punishment remains legal under Taiwan's strict legal system.
Although Taiwan has considered other methods of execution, including lethal injection, executions are still carried out today using a handgun.
Prisoners sentenced to death are first sedated and put face down on a mattress before being shot three times through the heart.
Should the prisoner opt to donate their internal organs, execution is then administered with a single bullet shot to the back of the head.
Even if the mother is spared the death penalty, she still faces a minimum of five years behind bars or is looking at life in prison.
Voulgaris was allegedly handed the category-one drugs in Malaysia around December 10 before she flew to Taiwan, ABC reported.
She was allegedly paid $1,800 to transport the drugs, in addition to her accommodation and travel costs.
The drugs hold a street value of about $1.24 million, said Chen Pochuan, captain of Taiwan's Criminal Investigation Brigade.
Furthermore, officers had been sent to her hotel to see if anyone had come to collect the drugs; however, no one ever did.
Since her arrest, she has been detained in a Taiwanese prison.
Huang told The Daily Mail that his client was a "good-natured person" who had too easily believed people who used her as a drug mule.
"She had no idea what was placed inside and under her luggage, because there is a hidden compartment, and she wasn't aware of that," he added.
Because she admitted guilt earlier on while still maintaining she had no idea of the drugs, she may potentially avoid the death penalty.
Taoyuan District Prosecutors alleged Voulgaris was part of a 'drug transport syndicate' in documents submitted to a Taiwanese court.
Her statements have been inconsistent," the documents read.
"Notably, the defendant claimed that the co-conspirator, John, who instructed her to bring category one narcotics to Taiwan, is her ex-husband, indicating a close relationship," it continued.
The defendant and her lawyer have requested that John be summoned to testify during the preparatory proceedings.
John's exact whereabouts remain unclear.
