Man's 17-year Thai prison 'hell'

[Absintheur]

The longest-serving British prisoner overseas has returned to the UK after serving 17 years in Thai jails - despite maintaining his innocence.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/lancashire/6662065.stm

More details about this case you can read here:

http://www.phaseloop.com/foreignprisoners/case-alan_john_davies.html

[dannyboy]

The longest-serving British prisoner overseas has returned to the UK after serving 17 years in Thai jails - despite maintaining his innocence.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/lancashire/6662065.stm

More details about this case you can read here:

http://www.phaseloop.com/foreignprisoners/case-alan_john_davies.html

I find it hard to believe that a man can be wrongfully arrested and found guilty of a crime in Thailand.

In no way are the Police open to corruption and evidence doesn't simply disappear , and to say the arresting officers' accounts of what happened don't collaborate is an insult to the fine officers of the Thai police force.

[grezzzy_greer]

This could be a very unfortunate miscarriage of justice, but just where did the information that he was involved in the drug trafficking come from?

Note this quote from the news article regarding information:

"and also what we conceived to be very worrying irregularities in evidence and documentation provided by an official attached to the British Embassy. "

This sounds as if it was the British Home Office that originated, or at least provided, some of the dodgy evidence, if indeed it was dodgy. If it was dodgy evidence coming from a UK government source, then why the hell is no-one making inquiries about that?

I am sure that Mr Davies is glad to be home, and after 17 years in a Thai prison, even if he HAD committed the offence I think he would be more than due to be released.

The question of the evidence which was not provided by the police does tend to put a very worrying twist on this - it is quite possible that he was used as a scapegoat, and possibly was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

The one thing this does do is to highlight to all the dangers of getting involved in drugs - no matter here in Thailand or anywhere else - trading in drugs does result directly in death and misery for many.

This case merits an inquiry in the UK into the handling of evidence etc by the embassy and it's staff if nothing else...but I suspect there is more to it than that, and it does sound a lot like someone needed a scapegoat, otherwise, why no physical evidence being provided to the court, despite its claimed existence??

So all I can say is "Good luck for the future, Mr Davies."

Greer

[Kitschiguy]

The longest-serving British prisoner overseas has returned to the UK after serving 17 years in Thai jails - despite maintaining his innocence.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/lancashire/6662065.stm

More details about this case you can read here:

http://www.phaseloop.com/foreignprisoners/case-alan_john_davies.html

I find it hard to believe that a man can be wrongfully arrested and found guilty of a crime in Thailand.

In no way are the Police open to corruption and evidence doesn't simply disappear , and to say the arresting officers' accounts of what happened don't collaborate is an insult to the fine officers of the Thai police force.

Do I detect a hint of irony in this statement?