Perth grandmother Donna Nelson returns to WA under prisoner transfer

Perth grandmother Donna Nelson, 60, has returned to Western Australia under an international prisoner transfer and will serve the remainder of her six-year sentence at Bandyup Women’s Prison. She arrived in Perth on Thursday night, 22 October 2026, after 1,388 days in Japan, according to AAP and WA in Focus.

Her family said in a social media post: “Our beautiful mum is finally home after 1388 days.” Daughter Ashlee Charles described the reunion as emotional, telling Nine: “It was a surreal feeling, long overdue,” AAP reported.

Nelson was arrested at Narita International Airport, near Tokyo, in January 2023 after customs officials found almost two kilograms of methamphetamine hidden in her suitcase. She told the court she was unaware of the drugs and was carrying the suitcase for a man she hoped to marry — a man called Kelly, whom she met online in 2020, who told her he was the Nigerian owner of a fashion business and paid her to travel to Japan via Laos to collect dress samples. He never showed up, AAP reported.

She was found guilty in 2024 and sentenced in December 2024 to six years in prison, ABC News reported. She lost her appeal in September 2025. Her return was confirmed by official Japanese sources, according to ABC News, and her family had campaigned to bring her home.