BRIT comedian Cerys Nelmes has finally landed back in the UK after spending almost five months trapped in Turkey following a shoplifting accusation that she insists was a mibintanoderstanding.
The 47-year-old rising comedy star from Bristol was accused of stealing £110 worth of clothes from a Zara store after items were allegedly found stuffed inside her backpack.
After months of legal limbo, her nightmare ordeal came to an end yesterday when a Turkish judge overturned her travel ban and allowed her to return home.
The comedian has finally touched down at Bristol airport after an agonising five months trapped abroad, a period she previously described as hopeless and “mentally draining”.
She was met by three close friends at arrivals and immediately burst into tears, running straight into their arms in an emotional reunion that marked the end of her ordeal.
Nelmes insisted she forgot to pay and never intended to leave the shop without settling the bill.
Nelmes had attended what was meant to be her final court hearing, which she later described as a “nightmare of a day” after the original judge “didn’t even turn up”.
The hearing had been expected to be postponed until the end of January, but another judge was eventually found to take on the case.
That judge lifted the travel restriction, paving the way for Nelmes to fly home, telling The Sun she was “emotionally and physically drained”.
Just two weeks before the trial, Nelmes shared her fears with followers online, admitting: “it’s a weird feeling, I’ll either be allowed home, or sent to prison for no reason.”
She added: “How does someone even prepare for those two different massive eventualities?”
CCTV footage from the store shows Nelmes browsing racks in a blue dress while carrying an armful of hangers, with additional clothing visible inside her white backpack.
As she heads toward the exit, she appears distracted by her phone, looking confused as she steps through the doors rather than making a run for it.
Instead of fleeing, the footage shows her lingering outside the shop still focused on her handset.
Moments later, a Zara employee approaches and escorts her back inside the store.
Nelmes insists she immediately returned the items and offered to pay, saying: “I returned straight away and handed the items to the staff. I was asked to pay and I said I would and the manager accepted this.”
Despite that, she claims the situation escalated rapidly and terrifyingly.
Describing her horror journey, she alleges she was forced into a car with three men and made to lie in the boot during the journey.
She told The Sun: “The men got into the back of the car as usual and I was asked to jump in the boot of the car and lay on top of a dirty spare tyre.”
Once taken into custody, Nelmes says conditions became unbearable.
“I wasn’t given food for 24 hours and it took me eight hours of pleading to get some water,” she said.
She described the toilet as degrading, explaining: “The toilet was a hole in the ground so everytime I had to go I would have to strip down naked and wash myself with a hose after.”
Her sleeping conditions were equally grim, adding: “My bed had bugs and all sorts in it, it was just horrible.”
Speaking previously to The Sun, Nelmes revealed the toll on her mental health, saying: “I need help and I’m mentally losing the plot. I keep having panic attacks and talking to myself. I’m so scared.”
Stranded abroad without work, she also faced severe financial hardship.
Nelmes said she had already spent £2,700 of her own money and had no income support while stuck overseas.
“I’ve got my holiday wardrobe and it’s gone cold here,” she explained.
Although the British Consulate offered second-hand clothes, she said they never arrived and added: “they still haven’t arrived and I can’t afford to spend money on new clothes as I need to save for accommodation.”
At her lowest point, strangers stepped in to help, offering her food and a place to sleep.
She later stayed in a cheap Istanbul hotel, fearing she could lose her home in the UK as work opportunities dried up.
Reflecting on her ordeal, Nelmes said: “As a British citizen it should not be allowed for me to be treated in such an inhumane manner. I will never be the same.”
She also claimed Turkish officials offered psychiatric help but required her to sign paperwork stating she had refused treatment because she could not afford it.
“They then made me sign a statement saying instead that she did not want help even though she did,” she said.
Despite everything she endured, Nelmes says it was the kindness of strangers that kept her going.
“I have been so lucky to be supported by so many strangers and kind people who have explained their stories which have been similar to mine,” she said.
“These people, the only way I have got the slightest bit of information about anything.”
Closing her message with gratitude, Nelmes said: “I don’t deserve all the kind words from people but I am very grateful.”
