Extradited (29 page)

I
have a profound memory of my grandfather, Andreas Symeou (who I was named after). It was a sunny, spring afternoon in 2006 when the whole family was sitting around my grandparents’ dining table. My granddad began to share gripping stories of his childhood in the Cypriot village of Lapathos, and told us of the hardship that he’d faced growing up there. In the summer of 1955, at the age of twenty-two, he’d decided to immigrate to England for a better way of life. He couldn’t afford a boat ticket, so he invested in two piglets – he raised them for a year, and then sold them to a butcher for a hefty profit. Upon his arrival in London he was stranded in Victoria Station, homeless, because the person who he’d planned to live with had never turned up. My granddad was overwhelmed with tears when he told us the story, even though fifty years had passed.

I thought I’d share the memory I have of my granddad because (at the time) it made me feel like I’d never have a story to tell. Only two years later, I experienced something far more harrowing than he ever did. It just goes to show that we have absolutely no idea what our futures will hold.

It’s been a journey that I couldn’t have imagined, and I’ve learned some very important lessons along the way. One of the
most obvious is to be extremely careful when abroad – especially if we ever find ourselves in the hands of foreign police. I’ve never blamed Chris and Charlie for what happened. Through no fault of their own they were forced into a terrible situation at the young age of eighteen. If I were violently intimidated by people of authority at that age, I probably would have done exactly the same thing. Now I’ve learned that if I were to be picked up and dragged to a police station when overseas, I wouldn’t speak unless a competent interpreter and British consular staff were contacted. Most importantly, I wouldn’t sign
anything
that I was unsure of. The police officers could lock me up for days and beat me senseless, but after everything that I’ve gone through, I’d like to believe that I still wouldn’t sign.

As soon as my family discovered that I’d been wrongly implicated as a killer, they did absolutely everything to try to fix the mess. At no stage did they ever doubt my innocence – not even for a moment. I’m fortunate enough to have had the emotional and financial backing of a strong family. What would have happened if a European Arrest Warrant was issued for someone else’s arrest, and that person had absolutely no support network? They would have been extradited within ten days of their arrest and dumped in a Greek prison! With no support, they could have easily fallen into the trap of heroin addiction or drug dealing in prison – not to mention been involved in violent riots. When finally making it to trial, there would have been
no defence witnesses
and the translation would have been appalling. With no money for a competent lawyer, they might have been sentenced to
twenty years
in prison – all because of an incorrect, unsafe identification from a photograph taken on a different night to the attack. If it could happen to me, it could happen to anyone.

Once I’d been arrested for the fatal bodily harm of Jonathan
Hiles, we discovered that a British court would have no power to consider my innocence, and I could spend up to a year and a half in prison on remand. My family gained access to the Greek investigation, which we scrutinised and exposed as completely flawed. We campaigned and protested for this to be acknowledged, and for a competent investigation to be conducted. My parents taught me that we should never give up a battle when truth is onside. It was stressful and exhausting because the world was against us, but nothing would have caused us to give up.

Despite our incredible fight for justice, the European Arrest Warrant meant that my extradition was inevitable. I was treated as though I was guilty and ended up in prison on remand having to endure some horrific situations. In the twenty-first century, within the European Union, this shouldn’t be allowed to happen. If the British authorities had the power to scrutinise the Greek investigation, I would have been exonerated – eliminating me from the scene of the crime as soon as they were issued with a warrant for my arrest. Not only would I have been able to continue with my life, but there would have been a chance to find the real assailant, who remains at large. As much as I appreciate that the government have acknowledged the flaws in the European Arrest Warrant, the changes they have made aren’t strong enough at all. British citizens facing extradition must be completely safeguarded. We must extradite only if there is sufficient evidence of criminal guilt. Even if we were to disregard my imprisonment completely, I still went through the stress of a lengthy criminal trial abroad – and I didn’t fit the description of the perpetrator from Day 1.

The night before I was extradited, my uncle Andy told me that there would ‘be many ups and downs’. It was difficult to believe that there would be any ‘ups’ when incarcerated. Surprisingly, my
time in prison wasn’t all doom and gloom. I’d made a handful of friends, like Arnas and Fivos, so at least I have some positive memories of my time in Avlona. One of the most memorable was sitting around a table in our cell, drinking prison-brewed alcohol and laughing for what felt like the first time in years. We made the most out of our terrible situation, and on that warm summer night – it felt like we were free.

I wish that my positive memories of prison could outweigh the bad, but they can’t at all. My uncle Andy had also told me, ‘However difficult it is, whatever you have to go through for this to be over, you will find the inner strength.’ When he told me this, I found it very difficult to believe him. Now I understand how true his words were. One of the biggest lessons that I’ve learned is that we can surprise ourselves with how strong we can be, especially when we have no other choice but to face our fears. With positive thinking and support, however difficult it is to achieve, we can get through anything.

It’s been a struggle, but my fight for justice was victorious in the end. The years between 2007 and 2013 will be significant to me for the rest of my life. There
were
many ups and downs, and it’s tough to know exactly how it’s changed me. From my teenage years into my twenties I would have inevitably grown as a person anyway. I don’t feel the need to list how it’s negatively affected me, because life is far too short for that. I can’t change the past, so I’ll just have to let go of any feelings of resentment or bitterness, and turn my bad experience around as much as I can. I’ll use the lessons that I’ve learned – take every opportunity that I have – and try to mould my life into everything that I want it to be. Life is a rollercoaster, and we have absolutely no clue what’s around the corner – saying that, my experience has more than prepared me for the ‘ups and downs’ to come. When I do eventually find myself going through a difficult period in my life,
I know that I’ll do everything I can to make it better. And if I fail in the attempt, and the rough patch seems like it could take an eternity to end, I’ll simply remind myself of what an old friend once said: ‘It doesn’t matter how long it takes to happen, all that matters is that it will.’

F
irst I’d like to thank Karen Todner of Kaim Todner Solicitors and Rupert Pardoe of 23 Essex Street Chambers. Together you kindly offered to help me financially while I wrote my draft manuscript and studied towards my degree. I may not have written this book if I hadn’t had that initial push. I’d also like to thank my publisher Iain Dale (and Duncan Barkes at LBC for putting me in touch with him). To everyone at Biteback Publishing, I was a student with no writing experience, yet you gave me such a brilliant opportunity. Including Rupert and Karen, thank you all for believing in me. You’ve helped me turn my life around in a way that I never thought I could. Moreover, I owe a massive acknowledgement to my editor, Victoria Godden, Adonis Pratsides (who kindly agreed to review my draft manuscript and took the time to help me edit it before submission) and Fivos Kalfopoulos (for checking over the Greek translations). Your contributions made a huge difference to the production of this memoir and I’m very grateful for your help.

To all those who protested outside of Westminster Magistrates’ Court or stood in the freezing cold and chanted outside of the Greek embassy – words can’t really describe how much I thank you. Many people wrote letters to politicians and/or
signed my petition. When all failed, many donated money to the campaign (which paid for defence witnesses to fly to Greece). I have no idea how we would have coped if we hadn’t had such incredible support. I thank you all very much – you went through this journey with us. I’d also like to express my gratitude to the politicians who acknowledged the flaws in the European Arrest Warrant and supported my case, including Baroness Sarah Ludford (Lib Dem), Gerard Batten (UKIP), Joan Ryan (and her then assistant James Kilmarten, Labour), and most importantly Nick de Bois (Conservative).

I’d like to thank John Jones QC and Edward Fitzgerald QC of the Doughty Street Chambers for representing me in my extradition appeals in London. We were up against a formidable law, yet you both did absolutely everything that you could to fight against the injustice. Unfortunately the EAW was an all-too-powerful rival at the time, which was completely out of our control. I’d like to thank everyone at Linn and Associates, Corker Binning and the AIRE centre; your help to us was very much appreciated. Jago Russell and everyone at Fair Trials International – you made me feel strong when I was at my weakest point. You are an incredible organisation and I thank you for everything that you’ve done for my family and me. Furthermore, one of my most important acknowledgements is to George Pyromallis, who defended me in my trial in 2011. It was a long and stressful period but the truth came out in the end. Although you didn’t like to show it, I know how emotionally attached you became towards our case. Thanks to you, Vanessa Katsara and everyone at your office at the time who fought for me, I have been able to put it all behind me (as best I can) and move on with my life. I’ll never forget you.

To all my family and friends, especially those who were at our house almost every day during the extradition appeals (you know who you are), you were amazing throughout this ordeal.
Thank you to Teresa and Leslie Johnson, Georgina Paraskeva, my godfather Eleftherios Panayiotou (Lef) and all of your families for being there for us through thick and thin. Simeos Yiannikaris always drove us to court, Nick Demetriades chanted through a bullhorn in the cold, Nick Paraskeva made a website for us and Andy Spyrou (and several others) went out of their way to give me advice that I’ll never forget. These are things that you didn’t have to do, but you did, and it means more to me than you’d know. Thank you to the Kouttis family for hosting a very successful fund-raising event and Gabriella Bord for everything you did to help. Kristianna Paraskeva, you were such a good friend to me when I was going through hell; and Andrew Demetriou you were too. Of course, I can’t forget the ‘Bum Squad!’: Andrew, Maria Demetriou and Sophia Di Piazza – you guys are the best.

Thank you to my grandparents, Bappou Andrico, Yiayia Nitsa and Yiayia Sofoulla, I love you all very much. I know how difficult this was for you but you all showed remarkable strength. Thank you to my uncle Theo Constantinou, uncle George and auntie Mary Nicolaides – and all of my cousins, especially Andreas Nicolaides who paid me a surprise visit in Athens when I was at a very low point in my life. On that note, thank you to my relatives from Cyprus who visited us in Greece, especially Louis Pericleous; and everyone who visited me in prison or at the trial; Uncle Spyros and Auntie Niki Spyrou, Uncle Bambos and Auntie Sotoulla Demetriou, Luke Cutajar and Maria Michael. My auntie Avgi Pericleous – I know how passionate you felt about me writing this book; I’ve dedicated it to Uncle Andreas because I can’t even begin to describe how much I appreciate everything you both did for us – he was a very good man. I also owe a huge thank you to Riya, who lived through this experience with me and dealt with a hell of a lot. We were victims of bad timing and circumstances, but even throughout the bad times there were
a lot of good. Thank you to her mum Ansuya, who came all the way to Athens with her while I was in prison. I appreciate how supportive you were to her regarding this terrible situation.

We met some incredible people in Greece – thank you to all those who we didn’t even know before but who helped us in some way or another. Especially Eugenia Iordanidi (Siozos), Father Malcolm Bradshaw, Christine and Cliff Sakali (and friends), thank you for showing us such kindness. Arnas Pakrosnis, Fivos Kalfopoulos and Vasilis Keritis – we met in the hardest of times in our lives: locked up in prison with our pending court cases always at the back of our minds. You all became good friends to me and I hope I had as much of a positive effect on your lives as you did mine. (I told you guys that I’d write a book when I was out, and I’m a man of my word!) Styliana Vasili, you were my only friend in Athens when I was on bail (and a very good one at that). Auntie Sotira Theodorou, it was amazing seeing you so much and I wish you were in London more often. Thank you for making us feel like we were at home with our family when I wasn’t allowed to leave Greece – and I miss your amazing cooking.

To all the witnesses who took the time to fly to Greece and defend my innocence, I can’t thank you enough, especially Georgina Clay, Toni Martelli and Christina Christou. Andrew Christophides, Aron Rouse, Alex Kalli, Jason Demetriou and George Georgiou – thank you for being a huge part of the trial. To all my best friends, ‘the boys’ and the Bournemouth Uni lot (you all know who you are), I couldn’t ask for better, more supportive friends.

Lastly, the people who I owe everything to are my family. To my sister Sophie, you are very special to me and I know how much this has affected you. You are a strong person and I want you to know that I’m here for you through thick and thin. Vasos Polycarpou, you are a brother to me and I hope that you can rely on me as much as I do you. To my parents, you brought me
into the world, taught me right from wrong, and showed me how to be a good person. You were strong for me throughout, even though I know how easy it could have been to fall apart. Life changed in an instant, then you dropped your lives and we got through it together as a family. Not only have you given me life, but you’ve saved it. A ‘thank you’ is nowhere near enough, so I guess the only way for me to show you how grateful I am is to make the most of it. I love you all very much.