Judge Scolds ‘Cocaine Babe’ Who Said She Went on Drug Cruise for ‘Likes and Attention’ on Instagram
When Melina Roberge was sentenced to 8 years in prison for helping smuggle $21 million worth of cocaine into Australia, she admitted to having an unusual motive for the crime.
Standing before Judge Kate Traill of the New South Wales District Court, the 24-year-old said that she “liked to take photos of myself in exotic locations for ‘likes’ and attention.”
As it turned out, she got more attention than she bargained for.
The Canada native became known in Australian media as “Cocaine Babe,” after she was arrested for importing 209 pounds of cocaine into Australia on a luxury cruise liner. The Sea Princess had made stops in several countries in the southern hemisphere, including Colombia, Peru, New Zealand and Australia. According to the New York Post, she stood to earn $100,000 from the plot.
Roberge and her two friends — Isabelle Lagace, 29, and Andrew Tamine, 63 — were jailed and charged with importing a commercial quantity of cocaine, which carries a maximum penalty of life in prison. All three have pleaded guilty. Lagace has been sentenced to at least 4½ years for transporting the substance, with a maximum term of 7½ years. Tamine is still awaiting sentencing.
Roberge will serve a maximum of eight years in prison, according to the Washington Post. The sentence carries a mandatory minimum of four years and nine months, meaning that her earliest release date could be May 2021.
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In court on Wednesday, Roberge explained that her presence helped the drug smugglers blend in. “I was meant to just be there and look like I was on holiday and look like a cover for everyone else,” she told the judge, according to CNN.
Judge Traill acknowledged that Roberge seemed to be genuinely remorseful and had “a good chance of rehabilitation.”
Still, the judge appeared dumbfounded and critical of Roberge’s motivations, and opined that social media can sometimes be a destructive force.
“She wanted to be the envy of others. I doubt she is now,” Traill said, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.
“This is a sad indictment on her relative age group in our society,” the judge said. “It is sad they seek to attain such a vacuous existence, where how many ‘likes’ they receive is their currency.”
Traill added, “This highlights the negative influence of social media on young women.”
