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STITCHED UP BY JUDGE
Teen found guilty by Cypriot judge of making up gang rape claim calls verdict a disgrace as she vows to clear name
A UK teenager found guilty by a Cypriot judge of making up a gang rape claim tonight said the verdict was a disgrace.
She vowed to clear her name, adding: “I’m dedicated to seeking true justice.”
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The 19-year-old left court in a mask with stitches on the lips in protest at her treatment.
The Foreign Office said it was “seriously concerned” over claims the Judge, Michaelis Andreas Papathanasiou, did not give her a fair trial.
The Cypriot judge was tonight blasted as “vindictive”.
Judge Papathanasiou ruled the teenager was lying when she insisted police in Cyprus had coerced her into withdrawing an allegation of an attack by 12 young Israelis.
He will sentence her next week — and she faces up to a year in jail.
The teenager, who we are not naming, and her mum left court wearing masks with stitches across the lips in protest at what they claim is an appalling denial of justice and abuse of human rights.
Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab — a former lawyer — tonight expressed “serious concern” over the case and told the Daily Telegraph he “takes issues of access to justice extremely seriously”.
The mum said: “This has been a nightmare. It’s so vindictive from the judge.
“We’ve been here since July and we’re still waiting. He could have sentenced her today and it would have been over.
'SEEKING TRUE JUSTICE'
“We are very disappointed with the verdict but aren’t surprised given how it’s gone with that particular judge. He is just trying to show who’s boss.”
The teenager said the verdict merely confirmed her fears she stood no chance of a fair trial.
She added: “There was, sadly, no surprise at the judgment.
“We expected this almost from the very start. One moment I was a victim, the next, I was the accused.
“Eight hours of interrogation, denied access to a lawyer — while those accused of raping me had legal representation immediately.”
But she vowed to continue her fight, adding: “I am entirely dedicated to seeking true justice — and not just for my case.
“I have been contacted by many who have been through similar experiences.
“This fight is for them and many more who have been forced to remain silent.”
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The teenager’s lawyers say they will take the case to appeal and to the European Court of Human Rights if necessary.
They say her statement retracting her original rape claim was made without a lawyer present, a breach of human rights, and while suffering post traumatic stress disorder.
And they claim the judge’s refusal to hear evidence about whether rape took place made the trial a farce.
Tonight the Foreign Office said it would be speaking to the Cypriots about the worrying legal issues.
It said: “The UK is seriously concerned about the fair trial guarantees in this deeply distressing case and we will be raising the issue with the Cypriot authorities.”
The teenager, in the Ayia Napa resort on a working holiday, told police she was having consensual sex with one of the Israelis in a hotel room when the others burst in, pinned her down and raped her.
The 12 were arrested but weeks later the Cypriot authorities announced she had retracted her complaint. The Israelis were allowed to go home.
'WE BELIEVE YOU'
The teenager, from Derbyshire, was charged with “public mischief”. She said police had coerced her into signing a retraction after eight hours of hostile questioning.
Her lawyers pointed out that the statement was in poor English — and had clearly not been written by the well-educated teenager.
Since her arrest the teenager has spent a month in prison. After release on bail she could not leave Cyprus as her passport was confiscated.
Her stop-start trial, dogged by legal arguments, has lasted almost six months.
As she left court today supporters wearing stitched-lip masks yelled: “We believe you.”
Her mum said: “The fact she has PTSD is not being taken into consideration by this judge. He is not thinking about my daughter at all.
“She needs to see someone back home in the UK who can treat her properly. It’s just not right that she is still here and not at home receiving treatment.
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“It wouldn’t surprise me if in a week’s time he puts her in prison just to be vindictive.”
Police claim the teenager cried rape after finding out she had been filmed having sex and the footage posted online. Judge Papathanasiou described her as an “unreliable witness” who had “repeatedly lied”.
He said: “She knows that she was never raped and she gave false statements. The guilt of the accused is proven. She confessed her guilt.”
In contrast he said police testimony was “honest and truthful”.
Forensic pathologist Dr Marios Matsakis told the court injuries on the teenager’s body were “consistent with the rape having taken place”.
After the verdict, lawyer Michael Polak of Justice Abroad, who have been advising the teenager, said the judge’s refusal to even consider whether a rape occurred meant the trial was fundamentally flawed.
He added: “On a handful of occasions the judge stridently stated ‘this is not a rape case, I will not consider whether she was raped or not’.
Call for holiday isle boycott
THOUSANDS of supporters were tonight calling for British holidaymakers to shun Cyprus.
Hashtag #BoycottCyprus trended on Twitter, backed by stars including TV presenter Julia Bradbury.
The Brit girl’s family have set up a Go Fund me page to help towards legal costs — and yesterday it jumped almost £5,000 to £56,000.
But Israeli lawyer Nir Yaslovitzh, representing four of the youths, said: “I applaud the court’s decision.
“I hope the court will find it appropriate to aggravate the punishment imposed on the girl who refuses to this day to take responsibility for the horrible act she has done against the boys.”
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“We find it incredibly difficult to follow this logic. An essential element of the offence is for there to be a ‘false statement concerning an imaginary offence’. Therefore, if the teenager was raped, she cannot be guilty.”
Mr Polak said this would be the basis of appeals that could go all the way to the European Court of Human Rights.
Outside court Maria Mappouridou of Network Against Violence Against Women said: “We support this lady. She has been raped by the men and then by the State of Cyprus and the police.”
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Lawyer for 12 freed Israelis, arrested after rape allegation by British woman in Ayia Napa, Cyprus, says they'll sue for damages
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