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Australian Filmmaker Convicted of Espionage in Cambodia

Accepted submission by takyon at 2018-08-31 13:32:56
Digital Liberty

Australian filmmaker James Ricketson found guilty of espionage in Cambodia [cnn.com]

Australian filmmaker James Ricketson has been sentenced to six years in a Cambodian prison, after being found guilty of spying for an unnamed country. The 69-year-old filmmaker was arrested in Cambodia in June 2017 after flying a drone over a rally organized by the Cambodia National Rescue Party, an opposition group that was later dissolved by the government [cnn.com].

A statement released by Ricketson's family Friday said they were "absolutely devastated" by the verdict and sentence. "We are in utter shock at this outcome and that James, an innocent Australian, has been sentenced so harshly. Our family lives this tragedy daily," his family said.

Ricketson's lawyer Sam Onn Kong told CNN that Ricketson would seek a royal pardon, which could take up to a month to be decided. Meanwhile his family urged the Australian government to intervene, saying that Ricketson's health had suffered during the 15 months he's spent in Prey Sar prison, in the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh.

Also at Time [time.com] and Reuters [reuters.com].


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