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| Britain |
| British police sued over terror suspect arrests |
| 2004-06-30 |
| The wife and brother of an Algerian pilot who was once accused of training some of the September 11, 2001, hijackers launched legal action to sue British police today. Lotfi Raissi was detained near London on September 21, 2001, after he was indicted by a federal grand jury in the US state of Arizona. US prosecutors described him at the time as one of their prime terrorism suspects. A British judge refused to extradite Raissi, however, and he was released from custody. The judge said US authorities had provided no evidence to link the 27-year-old with terrorism. Lotfiâs wife, Sonja, and his brother, Mohamed, today began High Court proceedings in London against London Police Commissioner Sir John Stevens, claiming they were wrongly arrested by anti-terrorist police on September 21, 2001. According to a statement from their lawyers, Sonja was held and interviewed for five days and Mohamed for two days before they were released without charge. âSonia and Mohamedâs claims against the commissioner are for false imprisonment in relation to their unlawful detention and assault in respect of the unlawful or excessive force used on them,â said lawyer Jules Carey. âThey are also asking the court to award damages for the humiliation and loss of dignity that they suffered and a punitive award for the arbitrary, oppressive and unconstitutional conduct of the police,â he said. The Metropolitan Police had no immediate comment on the case. Shortly after extradition proceedings were refused in 2002, Raissi said he would resort to the courts if he did not receive public apologies from the FBI, London police and the Crown Prosecution Service. Carey said Raissi would begin legal proceedings in âdue courseâ. âLotfiâs claim is significantly broader and more complex than those of Sonja and Mohamed, and involves claims both in the United States and the UK,â he said. |
| Posted by:Mark Espinola |