Jailed backpacker Patrick Malluzzo asks to come home
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A backpacker serving a hard labour
sentence in an Indian jail has admitted defeat in his
fight for freedom.
Patrick Malluzzo, who is more than halfway through a 10-year
jail term for drug smuggling, has been waiting for four years
for an appeal to be heard against his conviction.
But following the latest setback in February, when judges again
refused to hear the case, the 32-year-old, of Upper Heath Lane,
Dartford, has decided to end his battle and apply for transfer to a
UK prison.
The former city worker, jailed for smuggling cannabis during a
trip to India in 2004, could have previously applied for transfer
but this would have meant admitting his guilt, something he and his
parents, Theresa and Salvatore, have always denied.
They have all now decided they will not appeal against
Patrick's conviction in the Indian Supreme Court, which could
mean him spending another two years in an Indian jail.
Instead they have asked the British and Indian governments to
let him come home.
Patrick said: "My family and I have been
fighting for justice in India for the last six years - a fight
which has taken a serious toll on all of us.
"I want to return to the UK so I can be close to my family.
"We do not think we could continue the fight in the Supreme
Court and live through another two years of this ordeal while that
goes on."
Jago Russell, chief executive of Fair Trials International, has
been fighting against Patrick's conviction.
He said: "Patrick and his family have shown great courage
over the last six years and it is a travesty that this young man
will come home with a guilty conviction.
"We hope the British and Indian Governments will now do
everything in their power to get Patrick home as soon as
possible."
Thursday, April 29 2010
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