British Tourist James Fitton to Be Released from Iraq Jail – RisePEI

A British vacationer will likely be launched from an Iraqi jail after his 15-year jail sentence for antiquities smuggling was overturned, his household introduced.

James Fitton, a 66-year-old retired geologist from Tub, England, was arrested on March 20 on the Baghdad airport after authorities found shards of pottery taken from the Sumerian web site of Eridu in southern Iraq. He claimed that the shards had been collected with the blessings of his tour information.

Final month, in a shocking growth, he was sentenced to jail underneath a Saddam Hussein–period legislation enacted to cease the rampant looting of Iraq’s cultural heritage. The utmost penalty underneath the legislation is demise.

He spent six weeks in Baghdad’s Rusafa jail, earlier than Iraq’s Courtroom of Cassation overturned the ruling. In a press release launched on July 26, Fitton’s household mentioned that they’re “over the moon” about his launch.

“We had been knowledgeable this morning that the appeals court docket has determined to quash the decision of the Felony Courtroom, to completely acknowledge Jim’s innocence on this case, and to course of his speedy launch from a 15-year jail sentence in Baghdad,” Fitton’s son-in-law Sam Tasker mentioned. “We perceive that this course of is underway. He’s nonetheless in jail this night however will quickly be launched.”

Earlier than sentencing, Fitton defined that the tour information, Geoff Hann, inspired all the tour group to pocket shards from the unguarded archaeological web site. In line with Fitton’s lawyer, Thair Soud, an unidentified South African girl and a German nationwide, Volker Waldmann, additionally tried to depart Iraq with such objects. Attributable to some confusion amongst customs officers, the girl was allowed to board her flight. Waldmann was arrested however acquitted of costs after his lawyer argued that Fitton gave him the 2 objects from Eridu in his possession. They males mentioned they weren’t conscious that it was unlawful to gather the objects from the positioning and had not acted with prison intent.

Wera Hobhouse, a Liberal Democrat MP for Tub, welcomed the “unbelievable growth.” Hobhouse informed the Guardian that it “is not possible to think about the stress that Jim and his household have endured over the previous few months.”

There is no such thing as a launch date for Fitton, who remains to be in Rusafa jail, which is understood for its brutal residing situations and important inhabitants of Islamic State members.

Fitton’s son-in-law mentioned that the household is not going to be making additional statements to press till Fitton is residence, including that they “don’t wish to inflame the unsuitable teams or put him at any danger.”

“As soon as he’s residence,” they mentioned, “we’ll have fun and take a while to get better as a household, and will likely be glad to inform the story to anybody who will hear.”