The daughter of a retired British man imprisoned in Iraq for trying to bring broken pottery home has told Sky News that her 15-year sentence could also be perpetual at her age.
Jim Fitton, 66, of Bath, was arrested at Baghdad airport in March after picking up 12 stones and fragments of broken pottery as a souvenir of a trip to a former Eridu site.
He was sentenced to 15 years in prison on Monday after being found guilty of smuggling under the country’s antiquities law.
His daughter Leila Fitton told Sky News she had spoken to him after the sentence was handed down.
Image: Jim Fitton narrowly escaped the death penalty
“I was shocked. We felt positive until the trial. I was quite excited, but he stayed strong.”
Fitton, who had never traveled to Iraq before and missed his daughter’s wedding after her arrest, narrowly avoided the death penalty.
But Mrs. Fitton said through tears, “It’s a life sentence at its age, isn’t it?”
Image: Collected memories of a place in Eridu, southeastern Iraq
He continued: “I feel so helpless. We’ve had a lot of support: emails, calls, messages from all over the world.
“It’s been overwhelming, because I’d like to know what to do.”
Her husband Sam Tasker, 27, who lives in Bath, said a German tourist on the same trip, Volker Waldmann, had been released despite being charged with the same crime.
Image: Selection of confiscated stones Image: Taking stones and broken pottery is illegal under Iraqi law
There are no signs that the memories are illegal anywhere
Tasker told Sky News that his father-in-law “asked if he could take them home as a souvenir.”
“There was no indication anywhere that this was not only illegal but also led to a death sentence,” he said.
“He was accompanied by a tour guide with more than 40 years of experience, a representative of the Iraqi Tourist Office and a police officer, and none of them registered any protests.
“We’re devastated. It’s hard for us to swallow.”
Image: Jim Fitton (left) and Volker Waldmann were arrested for the same crime
Tasker said the family wants to appeal the verdict, which will take another 30 days.
The couple are staying in the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur, where Mr. Fitton and his wife Sarijah live, so they can support each other.
His local MP, Liberal Democrat Wera Hobhouse, raised an urgent question about the case to the Commons.
But the family claims that the Foreign Ministry has given “minimal” support to the consulate and no “political support”.
“We’ve been trying to help him at home ever since. But we feel like we’re left alone,” Tasker said.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said: “We are providing consular assistance to a British national in Iraq and we continue to support his family. We are in contact with local authorities.”