Heather (left) and Monica. A file picture

Siliguri, May 14: The father and boyfriend of an American woman arrested at Bagdogra airport last month for carrying bullets in her baggage have launched a blog to raise money to meet the legal costs of the case.

Heather Bond and her mother Monica from Santa Barbara, California, are out on bail and are staying in Siliguri, occasionally visiting the nearby tourist destinations and trying out Bengali food, said one of their lawyers. Their passports and visas are with the authorities and they have to report to the investigating officer once every fortnight.

In the blog, www.freethebonds.blogspot.com, Heather’s father, Lawrence, and her boyfriend, Sean McGaughey, have asked people to sign a petition to support the demand for the Bonds’ release. In the petition, Sean has acknowledged that the clip of ammunition belonged to him and he had mistakenly left it in the backpack. Around 350 people have signed the petition so far.

The blog contains links to donate money, ranging from $10 to $ 300, to the Bonds for meeting the legal costs in India. It also carries a letter written by Camerino Sanchez, the Santa Barbara police chief, which calls the mother and daughter innocent and reiterates that Sean had left the ammunition in the backpack by mistake.

Visitors to the blog can also read a love poem written by Heather to Sean on Valentine’s Day in 2007, see a family album and follow updates on the case.

In Siliguri, Heather and Monica are currently staying in a hotel, waiting for the court’s verdict.

“I suggested that they visit the nearby forests. So they went to Jaldapara Wildlife Sanctuary last week. Their family members in Santa Barbara and officials from the American Consulate in Calcutta are in regular contact with us,” Abhaypada Chatterjee, one of their lawyers, said today.

The two of them are also enjoying Bengali food, the lawyer said.

“I asked them to taste some Bengali dishes. Later, they told me they were enjoying ‘bhat’ (rice), ‘dal’ (pulses) and ‘alubhaja’ (fried potato),” Chatterjee added.