British Men Sentenced for Cocaine Smuggling in Bali
Two British nationals have been sentenced to prison in Indonesia after being convicted of smuggling cocaine into Bali, a popular holiday destination.
Kial Garth Robinson, 29, from Littlehampton, received an 11-year prison sentence, while Piran Ezra Wilkinson, 48, from Chichester, was sentenced to nine years. Both men were also fined approximately £45,000 or face an additional 190 days in prison if the fine is unpaid.
Robinson was apprehended in September at Ngurah Rai International Airport when customs officials discovered two packages containing a total of 1.3 kilograms of cocaine in his backpack. He informed authorities that he had been instructed by an individual to transport the drugs from Barcelona, Spain, to Bali and to deliver them to Wilkinson, who had arrived in Bali a few days prior, according to a report by on Thursday.
Wilkinson was arrested the following day in Canggu, located on Bali's south coast.
Prosecutors stated that Robinson and Wilkinson were acquaintances residing in Thailand who had met in Barcelona approximately one week before their arrests.
Legal Representation and Statements
On Thursday, Robinson's attorney, Robert Khuana, commented on the case:
"These items were brought from Barcelona to Bali, but they aren't meant for distribution.
My client was purely a courier, but he knew he was trapped in a syndicate scenario and was persuaded with $5,000 and another $5,000 for debt repayment and he was therefore willing to bring the drugs to Bali.
What made the sentence harsher was that his actions threatened the security against drug distributions in Indonesia.
Although he didn't know the contents of the package, he knew the contents were dangerous. If he had known, he wouldn't have done what he did."
Indonesia's Strict Drug Laws
Indonesia enforces some of the world's most stringent anti-narcotics regulations, with drug trafficking offenses potentially punishable by death. Although the country has executed foreign nationals in the past, it has maintained a temporary moratorium on the death penalty since 2017.
The last executions of foreign drug convicts occurred in 2016, when three Nigerian nationals were executed by firing squad, as reported by AFP.
Recent Related Cases
In July of the previous year, three British citizens from Sussex avoided the death penalty after being caught smuggling cocaine disguised as packets of Angel Delight into Indonesia.
Lisa Stocker, 39, and her husband Jon Collyer, 38, were detained at Bali's international airport in February 2025 after authorities discovered 994 grams of the Class A drug in their possession. Phineas Float, 31, who was to receive the packages, was arrested several days later.
All three individuals, hailing from Hastings and St Leonards in East Sussex, were informed by the presiding judge that they would serve a 12-month sentence and would be eligible for release in early 2026.
Government Actions on Drug Offenders
The administration of Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto has recently taken steps to repatriate several high-profile inmates convicted of drug offenses back to their respective home countries.
