Indonesian court sentences British woman, 56, to death over drug smuggling to Bali

BALI, Indonesia - An Indonesian court has sentenced a British woman to death for smuggling cocaine worth $2.5 million into the resort island of Bali.

Lindsay June Sandiford, 56, was found guilty Tuesday by the Denpasar District Court of violating the country's extremely strict drug laws.

In its verdict, a judge panel headed by Amser Simanjuntak concluded that Sandiford has damaged the image of Bali as a tourism destination and weakened the government's program of drug annihilation.

Earlier, state prosecutors just sought a 15-year prison sentence for Sandiford, who was arrested in May when customs officers at Bali's airport discovered 3.8 kilograms (8.4 pounds) of cocaine in her luggage.

Indonesia has extremely strict drug laws and convicted smugglers are often executed.