An 18-year-old woman who was imprisoned in a notorious prison in Colombia claimed that she was “raped, stabbed, hanged from staircases, and witnessed suicides” while there.
In April 2017, the infamous “Cocaine Cassie” Cassandra Sainsbury was detained. According to reports, a man who pretended to be a translator set up her purchase of headphones at a discount that contained cocaine.
The then-22-year-old spent three years in Colombia’s El Buen Pastor prison. The young Australian woman was detained alongside drug traffickers, murderers, and other criminals in the dungeon jail.
She described her time there as a “living hell”, and recalls witnessing inmates hanging themselves from staircases and stabbed.
“I’m the one who committed the crime, but I was set up by someone who I considered to be my friend,” Cassie admitted to Ant Middleton on SAS Australia. I had plenty of time to sort of comprehend being used and duped by someone I believed to be a friend—and being raped.
She said that jail life was miserable and painful and that she thought she would die there.
Cassie said: “I had a lot of enemies. And obviously being the gringa in a Spanish prison, it just brings that attention of you know, rich white girl. Need to I guess bully her down until that’s it?
“I had a lot of beatings. I got beaten up a lot. I got stabbed. I got two stab marks on my arms where I was stabbed. I went through a lot of things that I wouldn’t wish on anyone ever.”
The renowned prison is home to almost 55,000 women, according to the Sun Online. According to reports, the surroundings are unclean and have numerous bullet holes in the walls.
Across the nine blocks of the prison, it is reportedly possible for up to 20 women to share one cell in some instances. The convicts are claimed to hold beauty pageants with candidates dressing in fancy gowns and tiaras despite the unclean surroundings.
Before being let out of prison, Cassie spent three years inside. completing two more years of parole in Colombia. She is currently operating as a fitness influencer in Australia.
After being released from prison in 2020, she met Tatiana, a Colombian computer technician, whom she later married.
