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Lindsay June Sandiford (born 25 June 1956) is a former legal secretary and convicted drug smuggler from Redcar, Teesside in North Yorkshire, England who was sentenced to death in January 2013 by a court in Indonesia after being found guilty of smuggling cocaine into Bali. Although death is the maximum punishment for drugs-related offences under Indonesian law, the severity of the sentence was greeted with shock because prosecutors had not recommended the death penalty for Sandiford. The ruling was also condemned by the British government and anti–death penalty campaigners. Sandiford was arrested on 19 May 2012 after arriving at the island's Ngurah Rai International Airport on a flight from Bangkok when a routine luggage search uncovered the drugs stash. Under subsequent police interrogation she claimed to have been coerced into carrying the drugs by a criminal gang that had made threats against her family, and took part in a sting operation to arrest several other individuals she alleged to be part of a drugs trafficking ring. In December 2012, she was convicted of drug smuggling at Denpasar District Court and sentenced to death by firing squad in January 2013. By contrast, the others involved in the case were convicted of lesser drugs-related offences and received custodial sentences. Prosecutors had recommended Sandiford should also receive a custodial sentence because of her willingness to cooperate with police, but the panel of judges overseeing the hearing felt her actions had undermined Indonesia's anti-drugs policy and concluded there were no mitigating circumstances in her favour. Sandiford subsequently launched an appeal against the court's decision. She had funded her own defence costs during the initial trial but had no money for representation at appeal. Funds were subsequently raised to pay for an appeal lawyer, and the appeals procedure began. In the United Kingdom lawyers applied to seek a judicial review of the government's stance of not providing financial aid for Britons facing criminal proceedings overseas, but their legal challenge was dismissed by judges at the High Court of England and Wales on the grounds that Sandiford had little chance in successfully appealing the sentence. An appeal arguing the government's position was unlawful was also rejected. The British government submitted a statement to the Court in Bali alleging unlawful behaviour towards Sandiford by officials at the time of her arrest. The High Court in Bali rejected the first stage of Sandiford's appeal in April 2013, upholding the death sentence. An appeal was subsequently lodged with the country's Supreme Court, but in August this was also rejected. ==Background and arrest== Sandiford was raised in the north-eastern town of Redcar, Teesside in North Yorkshire, before moving to London. She later lived in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire.〔 A former legal secretary, she worked for many years in management at the Cheltenham-based law firm DTS Legal. She rented a house in the town, but was evicted after failing to pay her rent, and in early 2012 moved to live in India. Sandiford was married but separated, the relationship having produced two children.〔 Sandiford was arrested on 19 May 2012 after arriving at Bali's Ngurah Rai International Airport on a Thai Airways flight from Bangkok, Thailand, when 4.8 kg (10.6 lb) of cocaine was found in the lining of her suitcase during a routine search. She claimed to have been forced into carrying the drugs by a gang who had threatened to harm members of her family if she did not comply with their demands.〔 When informed she could receive the death penalty for drug trafficking she broke down and told police that she had been asked to carry the drugs for Julian Ponder, a British antiques dealer living in Bali, and his partner Rachel Dougall, and agreed to help in a sting operation to arrest them.〔 Sandiford was booked into a hotel with an undercover police officer, where she went about contacting members of the alleged syndicate. Arrangements were made for her to meet Ponder, and another man, Paul Beales at the hotel, where police arrested them on suspicion of drug trafficking.〔 Dougall was arrested after a subsequent search of the property she shared with Ponder uncovered 48.94 grams of cocaine, while 3.1 grams of hashish were found at Beale's house. Sandiford and Ponder were charged with drug trafficking. However, police failed to find evidence linking the other two to the crime, and they were charged with less serious offences.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Lindsay Sandiford case」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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