Michaella McCollum, one-half of the so-called “Peru Two,” has spoken out publicly in support of two British women currently accused of drug smuggling abroad. Her comments, loaded with empathy and laced with warnings, stem from her own deeply traumatic experiences in Peru’s prison system—a system she describes as nothing short of hell.

McCollum and fellow Briton Melissa Reid were arrested in 2013 while attempting to smuggle more than £1.5 million worth of cocaine from Lima’s Jorge Chávez International Airport. Their arrest made headlines worldwide. After pleading guilty, both were sentenced to over six years in Ancon 2 prison in Peru. McCollum was released in 2016 after serving two years and three months.

Now, more than a decade later, McCollum has publicly expressed concern over a fresh case involving two British nationals detained on suspicion of drug trafficking in a similar region. “I feel deeply for them,” she said. “I know what it’s like to be trapped in a place that strips you of everything—your rights, your identity, even your hope.”

McCollum’s commentary does not condone the alleged actions of the new suspects. Instead, she positions her statement as a cautionary tale. “Whatever the truth is in this new case, I hope they understand how serious the consequences are,” she added.

In interviews following her release, McCollum has revealed harrowing details of her incarceration. She spoke of overcrowded cells, violent altercations, poor sanitation, and corruption. “I witnessed women being beaten, starved, and degraded,” she said. “I thought I’d die there. Every night, I cried myself to sleep.”

Her account of Ancon 2 includes tales of women giving birth inside prison walls with no medical support, others battling addiction without rehabilitation, and inmates bartering for food and medicine. “It’s a different world,” McCollum said. “One mistake can sentence you to that world forever.”

The psychological toll of her imprisonment remains. “There’s not a day I don’t remember the faces of those women or the sounds of that place,” she said. “Prison isn’t just about walls and bars—it’s about surviving fear, every second of every day.”

Despite the trauma, McCollum has tried to rebuild her life. She earned a degree, became a mother, and even featured in a documentary that sought to explore the reasons behind her involvement in the original crime. She doesn’t shy away from accountability. “I made a terrible decision. I own that. But what happened inside those walls will never leave me.”

Her voice has now become one of rare authenticity in the conversation around international drug crime and incarceration. “If I can stop even one person from doing what I did, then maybe something good can come out of all this.”

As the legal situation unfolds for the newly arrested women, McCollum urges the public not to leap to conclusions. “Let’s not forget, these are people’s lives. Their families are already going through hell. Wait for the facts.”

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