British man faces death sentence in Iraq

The children of a British man facing the death penalty in Iraq for attempting to smuggle pottery out of the country have begged the UK government to help in his case.

After finding 12 shards of stone and broken pottery from his luggage, Baghdad airport police detained 66-year-old Jim Fitton, who was on his first visit to Iraq as part of an archaeological and geology tour.

Fitton’s children Joshua and Leila, as well as her husband Sam Tasker, who are urging the UK to intervene, claimed the Daily Telegraph that their father’s guide stated there would be “no problem” taking the shards.

They said: “Whilst on the tour, our father visited historical sites around Iraq, where his tour group found fragments of stones and shards of broken pottery in piles on the ground. These fragments were in the open, unguarded and with no signage warning against removal.

“Tour leaders also collected the shards as souvenirs at the site in Eridu. Tour members were told this would not be an issue, as the broken shards had no economic or historical value.”

However, after Fitton’s arrest, police transported the shards to the National Museum of Iraq, where a study revealed that they were artificial objects more than 200 years old, classifying them as culturally significant artefacts and subjecting him to the death penalty.

Tasker said it was “obvious there was no criminal intent.” The family believe Fitton’s trial may commence after Eid.

A Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office spokesman told the Telegraph: “We are providing consular support to a British national in Iraq and are in contact with the local authorities.

“As we’re aware, the Embassy on the ground have been visiting once a week and they and the lawyer are satisfied he’s being humanely treated right, which is the first tick in the box.”

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