An American woman walked free from a Bangladesh prison Tuesday, having received a presidential pardon three years after she was sentenced to a life term for smuggling drugs.
Eliadah McCord, 23, of Houston, left Dhaka Central Jail and prepared to return to the United States and reunite with her family."Learn from my mistake: Don't take a risk, and crime does not pay," McCord said.
U.S. Rep. Bill Richardson, D-N.M., who helped negotiate her release, arrived in Dhaka to escort McCord to Washington.
"Bangladesh is commendable for the very noble and humanitarian gesture," Richardson said as he greeted McCord. "She made a mistake."
McCord was arrested in 1992 with seven pounds of heroin hidden in her dress as she prepared to board a flight to London at Dhaka's international airport.
She pleaded innocent, saying a Nigerian man she had met during her two-week visit had compelled her to carry the four packets. She said she did not know the packets contained drugs.
In 1993, she and the man, Robert Blankson, were convicted in separate trials and sentenced to life terms. An appeals court last year reduced McCord's sentence to two years, but the decision was overturned by the Supreme Court.
Bangladesh law calls for a minimum of two years in prison for possessing heroin. A conviction for smuggling more than 25 grams, or 0.9 ounces, carries either a life sentence or death.
McCord was the first American to be sentenced in Bangladesh on drug charges.