A story with a little bit of everything. An American woman who smuggled a gold-plated .45 and ammo into Australia while intending to attend clown school.
Perfect.
Source: The Guardian
A US woman who flew to Australia with a gold-plated pistol in her luggage has been sentenced to a year in jail, despite claiming she brought it with her for protection.
Liliana Goodson pleaded guilty to charges of illegally importing an unauthorised firearm and illegally importing ammunition.
On Monday, the 30-year-old was sentenced in Sydney’s Downing Centre local court to the 12-month jail term, of which four months will be served in full-time custody.
Goodson was taken into custody immediately after the hearing and forced to remove her extensive jewellery before being handcuffed and led from the court.
She was initially arrested at Sydney airport in April 2023 after customs officers uncovered the 24-carat gold-plated pistol, worth about $3,000, in her luggage.
The court was previously told she had come to Australia to attend clown school and claimed she brought the gun for protection.
The back-and-forth when she was arrested was something.
When the ABF officer asked if there was anything in her bag they should know about, she replied “maybe some scissors”.
She was then asked if she had a gun, to which she replied: “Oh yeah, I forgot about that.”
“Do you have a permit for that?” the officer asked.
“Back in Alabama,” Goodson responded.
Goodson told officers she “wasn’t sure” if she had ammunition in her bag alongside the valuable weapon.
However, she admitted she had shipped 50 rounds of ammunition to Australia which was the wrong calibre for her handgun.
Further study showed she had conducted an online search days before flying out of the US, asking: “Can I have a gun in my suitcase?”
