British geologist Jim Fitton, who was sentenced to 15 years imprisonment in Iraq, has been freed.
This comes after the appeals court in Iraq on Tuesday, July 26, 2022, ruled that Jim possessed no knowledge of the possible ramification of his actions and lacked criminal intent.
This allowed for his previous verdict to be quashed.
In a virtual press conference held last night, the family expressed gratitude over the outcome of the appeal made in the Iraqi judicial system.
“We are absolutely over the moon about the outcome of the appeal, and that the appeal court in Baghdad has wholeheartedly agreed with our contention of Jim’s innocence.
“We would like to emphasise that this outcome has been delivered solely through the Iraqi judicial system, expertly navigated by our lawyer Thair Soud.
“The appeals court concurred with us that Jim had no knowledge of the potential ramifications of his actions, and had no criminal intent at any point.
“We thank the Iraqi judicial system and the court of appeal for delivering a fair and unbiased verdict based on the evidence presented to them,” said the family.
With Jim’s safe return to his family in Kuala Lumpur on Friday, July 29, his daughter Leila added that they were relieved that this nightmarish episode in their family was now over.
“He’s lost a lot of weight. We’ve got a health screening appointment booked for him next week… He’s keeping positive, doesn’t really talk about anything - what happened (in Iraq),” said Leila yesterday.
Her husband Sam Tasker added that it was not out of character for Jim to be reticent about his experience in Iraq as Jim is known to be a “private man”.
“You don’t want to ask too much. When he’s ready to talk about things, he will talk about things, right?
“So, our role is to just be here and support him coming back into the world… I’m not 100 percent sure he really believed that he totally woke up in his own bed,” said Tasker.
‘Smuggling’ broken pottery
Jim had spent a total of 160 nights in the Iraqi prison system.
On June 6, the retired geologist was handed a 15-year jail sentence by the Iraqi Felony Court.
Jim, who is a Malaysian permanent resident, was charged under Article 41 of Iraqi Law Number 55.
The 66-year-old was arrested in Iraq back in March for allegedly attempting to smuggle out historical artefacts during a guided trip in the country.
This act is normally punishable by death under Iraqi law.
The artefacts Jim allegedly smuggled were small shards of broken pottery.
Leila had described them as debris left on the site deemed of no economic or cultural value - which was the description provided to Jim by the tour guides.
Leila and other members of the family - who were frustrated with the inaction on Jim’s case - had previously launched a petition seeking Fitton’s release, which has received 357,000 signatures.
Tasker said the outpour of public support was “evidence that the actions of the many can move the needle in situations like this, you spurred us on when we were struggling to find hope.”
“We as a family will never again doubt the kindness of strangers,” he told reporters.
In a statement released in conjunction with the presser, the family had also thanked Malaccan governor Ali Rustam for his tireless support.
On March 20, Jim and a German national Volker Waldmann were arrested at the Baghdad airport for attempted exportation of artefacts with historical significance to Iraq and were remanded in the airport holding cell.
Before the verdict, the family had initially pleaded with both the British and Malaysian governments for support in the case. The family have reportedly received limited assistance from the British government.
Leila claimed that Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah, alongside other reps from the family’s home state of Malacca, has contacted the family to offer support with regard to the case.
Saifuddin’s call to Leila was confirmed by sources in the Foreign Ministry. However, the ministry has yet to give an official response at the time of publication. - Mkini
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