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New hope for 'drugs mule' grandmother Lindsay Sandiford facing execution by firing squad in Indonesia as Britain enters talks over possible prisoner swap

Lindsay Sandiford
A British grandmother facing the firing squad for smuggling drugs into Bali could be sent home if the Government agrees to extradite a tycoon wanted over a £900 million banking scandal.

Foreign Office Minister Baroness Warsi asked Indonesia’s justice minister Amir Syamsuddin to allow drugs mule Lindsay Sandiford and a second Briton on death row, Gareth Cashmore, to be allowed to serve out jail terms in the UK.

In return, Mr Syamsuddin requested that Britain extradite multi-millionaire Rafat Ali Rizvi, a 52-year-old British national sentenced in his absence to 15 years in 2010 for allegedly stealing funds from Indonesia’s collapsed Bank Century.

Mrs Sandiford, 57, was caught carrying cocaine worth £1.6 million in May last year.

Rizvi, 52, who has a luxury home in Park Lane, was a major shareholder in Bank Century.

He is accused of moving £900 million of distressed debt securities into accounts around the world along with another key shareholder.

Rizvi, who also has homes in the Bahamas and Singapore, was this year linked to a buyout of Glasgow Rangers FC, despite being on an Interpol wanted list.

He claims he is the innocent victim of a political conspiracy.

Cashmore, a 34-year-old roofer from Wakefield, West Yorkshire, was convicted last year of smuggling 14lbs of crystal meth.

There is no extradition treaty between Britain and Indonesia, but Mr Syamsuddin Indonesia was willing to discuss ‘co-operation on the transfer of sentenced persons’.


Source: Daily Mail, August 18, 2013

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