80 supporters gathered on Tennyson Down on Thursday to demand justice for the Freshwater Five, exactly 9 years after the events leading to their imprisonment began.
Scaffolding business owner Jonathan Beere and fishermen Jamie Green, Daniel Payne, Scott Birtwistle and Zoran Dresic were convicted in 2011 of conspiracy to import cocaine. The men, who received prison terms totalling 104 years, have always maintained their innocence.
Supporters congregated at the clifftop spot where on 30th May 2010 2 police officers claimed they saw items being jettisoned from Green’s fishing boat, the Galwad-Y-Mor, near a spot where £53million worth of cocaine was found the next day. The officers initially said they had seen 6-7 items thrown overboard, but later changed their descriptions to more closely match the appearance of the drugs bags recovered.
Supporters held up a banner demanding ‘justice for the Freshwater Five’. Beere and Payne lodged appeal applications in July 2018 and are awaiting an initial decision from a judge.
Sue Beere, wife of Jon Beere, said:
“Nine years ago our wrongful conviction nightmare began. We hope that the appeal court will now finally deliver us justice.”
Emily Bolton, the lawyer representing the five men, said:
“Yesterday’s gathering showed the strength of support out there for the Freshwater Five, who have been catastrophically failed by our justice system.
Article continues below this advertisement “Crucial new radar evidence which was not disclosed to the men at trial blows apart the prosecution’s case. It also reveals that an unknown vessel travelled to the location where the drugs were found.
“I would encourage anyone with information about the case to get in touch with us.”
