Ghana Releases ‘cocaine-pushing’ British Teenagers

Two British teenagers jailed in Ghana for drug-smuggling have been freed after spending a year behind bars, officials announced in London Thursday. Yasemin Vatansever and Yatunde Diya, both 17 and from north London, were given 12-month sentences by a court in Accra after their arrest last year for drug-smuggling.

According to the legal charity ‘Fair Trials International’, which is supporting the pair, they were released early Thursday and hope to return home to the United Kingdom by the end of the month.

The girls had hoped to be released in April as the Ghanaian prison authorities have the discretion to take three months off a 12-month sentence, but authorities in Accra insisted they must serve their sentences in full, if only to serve as deterrent to others.

The pair were arrested on July 2, 2007 at Kotoka Airport in the Ghanaian capital, Accra. Some 13lb (6kg) of cocaine - said to have a street value of about £300,000 - was found in two laptop computer bags in their luggage.

They claimed they did not know about the drugs but were later convicted of attempting to traffic cocaine from Ghana to London.

Fair Trials International chief executive Catherine Wolthuizen said: “The girls have served their full sentences, but the men who groomed them and lured them to Ghana remain free to target other vulnerable young women.

“These men are known to the authorities but have never been prosecuted.

“The girls’ experience sends an important warning to young people but the best protection against further cases of this nature is for the authorities to focus efforts on catching the big fish, not the small fry.”

She added: “We are pleased the girls will be back with their families soon. We hope they will now be able to put this experience behind them and resume their normal lives away from the glare of publicity.”

Source African Press Agency

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