Report on the Arrest, Trial and Sentencing of Foreign Nationals in Clysperis
Purpose of the Report1. This report is an independent analysis of the procedures around the arrest, trial and sentencing of foreign nationals in Clysperis. This was done at the request of the Clysperi Government.
2. The team that compiled this report was led by Detective Inspector Amber Duff, an experienced law enforcement official, and also included legal, policing and forensic experts. Over the course of the investigation the team re-examined evidence, the procedures of the investigation by Clysperi authorities and the trial that resulted. The full cooperation of the Clysperi authorities in this is appreciated
The Defendants and Timeline 3. On the 20th of August 2023, the four defendants entered Clysperis on tourist travel visas each was detained at the airport on suspicion of possession of an illegal substance with intent to supply. The four were then charged on the 25th of August 2023, the specifics of each of the four are as follows in this section.
4. Aiko Odaka is a Daitojin national, charged following the discovery of cannabis in her luggage.
5. Daniel McConnell is a Seaforthian national, charged following the discovery of methamphetamine and fentanyl in his luggage.
6. Novak Tasic is a Safraen national, charged following the discovery of cocaine in his luggage.
7. Stephanie Le Fevre is a Marseilles national, charged following the discovery of marijuana in her luggage.
8. All four defendants deny the charges against them.
9. On the 1st of September 2023 the four defendants were tried and convicted of the charges against them. They were sentenced to death.
Examination of the Evidence10. When interviewed as part of the independent analysis the defendants denied the charges against them, while not surprising it is noted that none of the four have prior criminal records. During questioning Ms Okada claimed to have never seen the bag containing the cannabis before.
11. Consultation with each of the home nation embassies was undertaken by members of the team to query what travel advice was given to their citizens traveling to Clysperis. Each of the four nations in question (Daito, Seaforth, Safraen and Marseilles) have clear guidelines for travel abroad provided by their respective foreign offices and issued as part of the visa application process. In respect of Clysperis the information makes the drug laws very clear, it is therefore reasonable to conclude that the four defendants were notified of the Clysperi laws. Questioning of the four defendants confirmed their awareness.
12. Given the remarks of Ms Okada forensic examination of the drugs and the bags containing the drugs was conducted. These were carried out by Dr Allen a noted Achkaerinese Crime Scene Investigator. The results in respect of the drugs confirmed their identity and purity as originally reported by Khemen police, analysis of the bags yielded no DNA traces matching the defendants, this prompted questions of the officers responsible for the original investigation who confirmed that the bags were the ones seized from the defendants.
13. It is concluded by Dr Allen that there is no identifiable forensic evidence linking any of the defendants with the substances they are accused of bringing into Clysperis.
Examination of Trial Procedure14. For the purposes of the investigation the review of the legal procedure was conducted by SHIELD Law LLC, a leading and reputable law firm, the case handler was Elecktra Hope
15. Ms Hope notes in her findings that despite the impression given by reports in CSMC articles specifically that of a "swift trial" that the Clysperi trial did resemble a trial that appears compliant with article 8 of the MCUR given the information and evidence presented at the time of the hearing.
16. It is noted that the defence attorney's in the case were not provided with all the facts, this is a point made in respect of paragraph 12 of this report and not a reflection on the trial process, the evidence provided to the court in the original case included forensic reports showing links between the defendants and the drugs. Given the conclusions of the forensic examinations undertaken by Dr Allen it is believed by Ms Hope that the forensic reports provided by the prosecution at trial have been fabricated.
17. It is further noted that the defence attorney's at trial (provided for free as per the MCUR) were not what might be called "battle hardened" a survey of them found that they were all recent graduates of law school with varying amounts of experience in court ranging from a handful of small claims cases to no experience whatsoever, certainly none of them had ever been involved in a criminal trial before, let alone had responsibility for one that carried the potential for the death penalty. This lack of experience is probably primarily responsible for the evidence not being robustly challenged, a more experienced attorney would undoubtedly have had independent testing on the evidence done, that these attorney's did not is no reflection on them, their ability and integrity is not questioned. It is simply a further piece of evidence against elements within the Khemen police.
18. Given the tainted evidence it is concluded that the convictions against the four defendants are unsafe.
Recommendations19. The convictions against the four defendants to be quashed and their immediate release ordered.
20. An immediate investigation conducted by the appropriate watchdog authority into the conduct of Khemen police in this matter in particular with respect to officers involved in interview, arrest and evidence analysis, it is apparently clear that for a reason as yet undetermined elements within Khemen police sought to facilitate a miscarriage of justice. While it is not the purpose of this report to speculate on the motive it does lean towards a political one.
21. The Clysperi authorities to fully comply with the defendants should any of them wish to enforce action under article 6.5 of the MCUR, this does amount to a finding that the arrest of the four defendants was unlawful and therefore a breach of the MCUR, however it is again noted that this appears perpetrated by a handful of individuals within Khemen police and perhaps elsewhere, there is no evidence that this was at the behest of the Clysperi Government.
The above report is hereby submitted to the Clysperi government and the Foreign Offices of Daito, Safraen, Marseilles and Seaforth
Signed
Amber Duff
Dr Paul Allen
Elecktra Hope
