An Australian drug smuggler serving a life sentence married his Indonesian sweetheart on Monday in prison on the holiday island of Bali, and again proclaimed his innocence. Martin Stephens and Christine Winarni Puspayanti, both 34, said their vows in a church on the grounds of the Kerobokan Prison, attended by family and friends, including members of the so-called Bali Nine drug ring.
Dressed in traditional Javanese wedding costumes, the couple danced to romantic music before Stephens scooped his bride up in his arms and carried her to cut a three-tiered cake during the reception, to cheers and wolf-whistles. "I feel so happy," Stephens told reporters, adding that he was planning to seek a presidential pardon. "Of course, I'm sure it will come true," he said of his chances.
Puspayanti, a mother-of-one, said they met six years ago when she visited a friend in prison. "I'm really happy today. God has united us... Who knows, if God wills it, he may be able to leave (prison)," she said. Stephens was arrested in 2005 at Denpasar airport on Bali with 2.9 kilograms (6.4 pounds) of heroin strapped to his legs and stomach. He was one of the Bali Nine gang of Australians found guilty of trying to smuggle drugs from Indonesia to their homeland.
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