How Tinder led Kalynda Davis down the rabbit hole
WHEN Kalynda Davis met charismatic Peter Gardner on dating app Tinder, she was immediately captivated.
Like most Tinder hook-ups, things moved quickly and a few weeks after exchanging details in October, the loved-up pair boarded a China-bound plane together on November 5.
Then, just three days later, their living nightmare began.
As the western Sydney couple boarded their flight home from Guangzhou, they were arrested on suspicion of smuggling 75kg of methamphetamine — known as the street drug Ice — back to Australia.
The daughter of a former NSW police officer was taken into custody in the Communist state, linked to more than $80 million worth of drugs found in checked-in luggage.
Thousands of kilometres away from the safety of her two-storey brick family home in Glenmore Park, the 22-year-old now faced death by firing squad.
The promising athlete and basketball player was transported to a detention centre in shackles and had her long blonde hair cut into a short bob.
As she sat in her tiny cell, word of her arrest reached the Australian Consulate-General office in Guangzhou.
Her father Larry remained clueless for several days about the fate that had befallen his daughter. On November 10, after noticing their daughter had not accessed her Facebook account in several days, Kalynda’s family contacted police to report her missing.
Before leaving Australia, the couple told their families they were travelling to Guangzhou for a short break but would return to Sydney for a few days, before flying on to New Zealand for an extended holiday.
No return
It was later confirmed to the family that Kalynda never boarded her return flight to Sydney.
Then, on November 12, came the shocking news. The Davis family were alerted their daughter had been detained in China in relation to drug trafficking.
The job of securing Kalynda’s release was given urgent priority by DFAT and negotiations with Chinese officials began, personally overseen by Foreign Minister Julie Bishop.
In the critical days after Kalynda’s arrest, Canberra-based DFAT officer Claire Went was appointed by DFAT as the family’s liaison.
Under Chinese law police can detain suspects for up to 37 days without laying a charge and it took consular officials three-weeks to strike a deal.
Kalynda Davis
Kalynda’s carry-on luggage was the crucial piece of the puzzle that would ultimately secure her release. There was now distance between her and the drug-filled suitcase, allegedly jam-packed with Ice, which had been checked-in at the counter.
As behind-the-scenes diplomatic negotiations continued between consular and Chinese officials, the Australian public remained in the dark until news broke last week.
Kalynda’s parents Larry and Jenny were told to remain tight-lipped — on advice from Penrith-based Bell Lawyers and Chinese legal firm Wang Jing — as they waited for their daughter’s safe passage home.
During the family’s “nightmare” one-month wait, it was Ms Went who kept them sane.
“Without the support of Ms Went we would not have been able to get through this difficult time,” Larry and Jenny said in a statement.
Upon finding out his daughter would be released last Friday, Larry flew to China the following morning.
With the support of DFAT officials, and with Kalynda’s release kept confidential, the father and daughter returned to Sydney on Tuesday morning.
In an interview with The Western Weekender, Larry described the moment he was reunited with his youngest child.
“Her and I are close, as close as any father and daughter could be. I never once thought that she had done anything wrong,” Larry said.
“I knew she was so innocent. I prayed every night that the truth would come out, I prayed for the authorities, that it was dealt with in the way that it was dealt with, and our prayers were answered.”
On the flight home, the former Penrith Christian College student kept telling her dad “I’m sorry”, “I didn’t do it” before both broke down in tears as they touched down at Sydney airport.
Larry described their ordeal as a “parent’s worst nightmare”, and it was particularly tough for the family on Kalynda’s birthday on November 22.
“(In the beginning) we never slept, we walked around aimlessly but with the support of others our outlook changed. We were in the depths of despair but we grew into a family of hope,” he said.
Kalynda, who has avoided the media glare, remains in the dark on the future of her boyfriend.
Gardner, a New Zealand-born 25-year-old builder who lives in the Sydney suburb of Richmond, remains behind bars in China.
Recruited
Senior police sources told The Daily Telegraph earlier this week Gardner may have been recruited by an organised crime syndicate in Sydney to smuggle the drugs.
There are approximately eight Australians detained in southern China over links to international drug networks following a crackdown by local authorities.
As of October this year, there were more Australians jailed in China than anywhere else in the world with the Chinese system boasting a 99 per cent conviction rate.
The majority of the 42 Australians behind bars in China were arrested and charged over business, fraud and family-related charges.
All Australian citizens receive ongoing consular support from DFAT, with current high-profile prisoners including Rio Tinto executive Stern Hu, Charlotte Chou and Dr Du Zuying.
The cases against some prominent Chinese-Australian citizens have been described by their families and supporters as set-ups, designed to damage their business interests.
High-profile entrepreneur Matthew Ng (held on bribery, embezzlement and corporate charges) was sent to Sydney from Guangzhou last month as the first Australian prisoner returned since a prisoner transfer agreement was struck with China in 2011.
Carl Mather, an English teacher married to a Chinese woman, was arrested and jailed for assault in 2011.
He was later released and deported, moving his family to New Zealand. Mather claimed the assault was in self-defence after his house was stormed by a group of men trying to extort money from his wife.
Australians currently make more than 300,000 trips to China per year.
After a recent crackdown on drugs, DFAT issued a new warning to travellers warning them against carrying luggage or parcels in-and-out of China for third parties.
“Penalties for serious drug offences in China are severe and include the death penalty,” the DFAT travel advice states.
“In 2014, a number of foreigners have been arrested for allegedly trafficking commercial quantities of drugs, mainly when attempting to exit China at the airport in Guangzhou and also in Hong Kong.
“Foreigners have been executed for drug offences in China in recent months.”
DFAT also warns against the “use or possession of even small quantities of ‘soft’ drugs”, which carry harsh penalties.
Kalynda is one of the luckiest Australians to have been held in a Chinese detention centre.
The identities of other Australians currently behind bars have been kept confidential by authorities who are engaged in similar negotiations with Chinese officials to secure their release.
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/ne...-the-rabbit-hole/story-fni0cx12-1227154179062
