Lorry driver jailed in Greece

Lorry driver jailed in Greece

The British Embassy was not informed until after the trial

Attempts are being made to release a West Yorkshire lorry driver from jail in Greece.

David Wilson, 44, from Wyke, near Bradford, was arrested on 18 March in the Greek port of Patros when 19 Iraqi Kurds were found in the back of his truck.

The next day Mr Wilson was sentenced to 11 years in jail for transporting illegal immigrants and fined £47,000.

He denied all knowledge of his illegal cargo.

They have driven a coach and horses through the European Convention of Human Rights in dealing with this case

Stephen Jakobi - Fair Trials Abroad

Richard Corbett, a member of the European Parliament for Yorkshire and the Humber, said that by jailing David Wilson, the Greek authorities were in serious breach of the European Convention on Human Rights.

"The British Embassy in Athens were not informed of David Wilson's arrest until after his trial," he said.

"The Greek authorities imposed on David Wilson a local Greek lawyer who only spoke Greek and an interpreter who turned out to be the town's local jeweller."

Mr Wilson will be released from jail if he can pay the authorities £20,000.

'Very weak'

Any appeal would take a minimum of eight months to come to court.

Mr Wilson's brother-in-law Richard Frier has visited him in jail and is leading a campaign to get him released.

"He is in a distressed state," Mr Frier said.

"There is no one there who speaks English. Physically he is very weak as he has not been eating as the sanitation is so bad."

Stephen Jakobi, director of Fair Trials Abroad, said: "They have driven a coach and horses through the European Convention of Human Rights in dealing with this case.

"An appeal cannot fail provided he gets a fair retrial with adequate time to prepare a defence."