Now, recent reports claim that her family have urged people not to make donations to the above campaign, as per SABC news, Western Cape. The family’s reason? Her then-boyfriend, the same man who was allegedly involved in drug smuggling and the accused reason for her arrest, is behind the petition according to them.
What is the #FreeAshley movement?
When the #FreeAshley hashtag started gaining momentum on social media, people were curious about the story. How does a 22-year-old girl from George in the Western Cape end up imprisoned in Thailand with a life sentence? And further, why was the imprisonment deemed unjust?
In short, Ashley Oosthuizen was working at her former boyfriend’s restaurant who reportedly was involved in the dark web and drug smuggling when she signed off on a package for him. The package reportedly contained MDMA, and Ashley was arrested. This was in October 2020.
Also Read: Viral Plea to #FreeAshley a 22-year-old from George allegedly trapped in a Thai prison
Her family and friends have defended that she is innocent as per the George Herald, but that the www.freeashley.org page is not.
The George Herald also indicated that the website, “containing Ashley’s entire story, is essentially a crowdfunding website allegedly created and launched by Nepps.”
Triss Nepps is the Facebook account name for the person claiming to be the boyfriend according to the publication.
The page seems to have been removed at the time of this article’s writing.