"Sitting in the trap"

Call for help from ex-“GNTM” model Laura Weyel from Bali

Laura Weyel tearfully describes on Instagram how scared she is of going to prison in Indonesia.(Bild: www.instagram.com/lauraweyel)

Former "Germany's Next Topmodel" contestant Laura Weyel sent a dramatic cry for help to her followers on Instagram. She is facing three years in prison on the Indonesian island of Bali after a dispute with the landlord of her beach villa. "She is trapped."

In several videos, the 38-year-old, who works as a yoga teacher on the supposed dream island, tearfully describes the hopeless and threatening situation in which she, her partner James and their seven-year-old daughter find themselves at the moment.

She is facing arrest for physical violence, which she denies, and a possible three-year prison sentence. "I'm trapped, with no rights as someone from the West." A fundraising campaign to be able to afford lawyers is intended to help. At least 30,000 euros are needed for bail and legal representation.

Dispute with landlord escalates
The background to the drama is a dispute with her landlord, which Weyel believes began harmlessly. She has been living in Bali for a year with her daughter and her boyfriend James, and in a video she mentions a friend who had helped her rent a luxurious villa by the sea.

But the dream quickly turned into a nightmare: doors wouldn't lock, the pool was full of algae and the garden was overgrown. According to the model, the landlord refused to rectify the defects for months. Weyel refused to accept this and simply paid less rent.

What followed: The landlord cut the electricity and water and wanted to throw the model and her family out of the house. He arrived with 20 people and even a police officer to evict her.

Child threatened
"They threatened to grab us and take my child away," says Weyel. The people then threw her family's belongings out of the villa. When a woman tried to enter her young daughter's room, they grabbed her by the neck. Weyel insists that she "didn't hurt anyone", she only wanted to defend herself and her child.

Weyel was reported to the police about the incident. She doesn't know who exactly. In any case, she is terrified of being arrested. She doesn't dare leave the country because she is convinced she will be arrested at the airport.