Schapelle Corby - Innocent or Guilty?

[ColB]

Mercedes has a new modelling shoot with AusRotary.

Can't post the image as it contains graphic scenes involving animals.

See: Post 647 at the following link:

http://ausrotary.com/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=163101&st=0&sk=t&sd=a&start=20

 

[ZackW]

Hey Zack, dont get your knickers in a twist over GG. He's only taking the piss, mate. As if the Indos pay any attention to ASF, even though there are some fine literary gems that come out of it from time to time. Those gems would be wasted on them though......straight through to the keeper, as they say.

The point is that, whether he/they can deliver or not, he is issuing threats to harm Schapelle Corby to silence this forum on the topic. Whether he is deluded or not, that is vile. It demonstrates what he is.

Similar, his pathetic attempt to trace me, and the implied threats there. Maybe he will recognize this small subset of info:

• City Marburg
• ISP Telstra Internet
• Latitude: Queensland -27.5667
• Longitude 152.5833

Well guys, I'm out of here. Can't instil common sense between the ears of someone who hasn't got the capacity for logical thought Easier to chat with a monkey!
"When the finger points to the moon, the imbecile looks at the finger! SEEYA.

They have been brainwashed. Simple as:



When you combine the media minipulation process with a bunch of sick and twisted people, this is the result. They simply repeat smears they have been fed time and time again. They hide from the concrete facts of the show trial and the racist sentence. They ignore the implications of the cowardly Australian government selling Schapelle Corby's human rights to sustain its relationship with a foul regime.

I can't argue with a word you say Varekai.

 

[mayk]

I can't argue with a word you say Varekai.

Ofcourse there is a special word in dictionary for people who argue with themselves...

 

[Patsy]

At law she was not actually in possession. She said it was hers but it had been in the airline s possession. If she had known its entire contents she would not have said that.

Whole thing is a joke, a bad one

"nearly all people" on what do you base that? In my time on the beat 80% of suspects nodded the head when caught in possession.

:bekloppt: That is an absolutely correct observation Explod. Court statistics back that up.

 

[Calliope]

The article posted on Ruby Sapphire.... is written by someone who had no idea what was going on... so he just put his own spin on things! I actually know the person who owns that website. If you keep searching you'll find the usual media spin on things that was created by the Secret Police Colonel who abducted my husband and told the media that I had 160kg of sapphires in my underwear. If you believe that, you'll believe anything.

Not sure why you are continuing to try and discredit me. After all, I am NO threat to anyone here.

In reply to the comment made about planting drugs in someone's bag, it happens. Of course the majority of drug mules know exactly what they are doing and yes, many claim they didn't know what it was in their bag or strapped to their body. But there have been some cases where drugs were planted in their bags and they were completely unaware.

You decided to use your own name on the thread. You must have expected people would be curious about your credentials.

There are two sides to every story. Hence your interest in the Corby affair. Corby apologists are putting their own spin on her story.

You threw your hat into the ring when you made a mean-spirited attack on Slim Pickins (#746 above) for simply posing a question that was being commonly asked eight years ago when you were caught trying to flee Laos with $50,000.

 

[pilots]

The point is that, whether he/they can deliver or not, he is issuing threats to harm Schapelle Corby to silence this forum on the topic. Whether he is deluded or not, that is vile. It demonstrates what he is.

Similar, his pathetic attempt to trace me, and the implied threats there. Maybe he will recognize this small subset of info:

• City Marburg
• ISP Telstra Internet
• Latitude: Queensland -27.5667
• Longitude 152.5833

They have been brainwashed. Simple as:



When you combine the media minipulation process with a bunch of sick and twisted people, this is the result. They simply repeat smears they have been fed time and time again. They hide from the concrete facts of the show trial and the racist sentence. They ignore the implications of the cowardly Australian government selling Schapelle Corby's human rights to sustain its relationship with a foul regime.

I can't argue with a word you say Varekai.

Zack, you must have been promised some good pussy, or you have been brainwashed, what is it?? Not many sleeps now Zacko. 5840.

 

[2BAD4U]

the racist sentence.

Racist Sentence?!? She got 20 years, if it was one of their own she would have been shot. She got off lightly.

:bigun2: + 9

 

[knocker]

Racist Sentence?!? She got 20 years, if it was one of their own she would have been shot. She got off lightly.

:bigun2: + 9

If she was up for the squad, zacko would have blindly thrown himself in front of the barrage to save his distressed damsol lol

 

[FPSS]

You decided to use your own name on the thread. You must have expected people would be curious about your credentials.

That's coz I have nothing to hide. I thought you guys might appreciate some honesty.

There are two sides to every story. Hence your interest in the Corby affair. Corby apologists are putting their own spin on her story.

I'll give you that. Sorry but even eight years passing doesn't lessen the emotion I still feel at being put in that situation. My kids still haven't gotten over it.... and I suppose I haven't either. It's a terrible situation to be in when your whole life is put on public display. Mud sticks I suppose.... and so many people still stuck in that prison in Laos who may never see their families again. I'm not talking the druggies [10% population in Phonthong], I'm talking the political prisoners who wanted democracy. Got hooked on the line that the US fed them...blaa blaa blaa.

As for my interest in the Corby affair..... I took an interest because I wanted to make sure her lawyers knew what they were up against.... if you have drugs in your bag in Indonesia and you can't prove where they come from, then you will be sentenced BIG time if you try fighting Indonesia and making them lose face. I stayed involved as an observer because I watched what a mess they made of her case and thought, surely these people can't seriously think that this approach is going to work in her favour. Right up until the court sentencing they seriously thought she'd get off.

There were several things that interested me from a legal point of view, not an emotional point of view. And these related to the fact that how could anyone get 4.2kg of mj through two Aussie airports undetected... when they were not under police covert surveillance.... and why wouldn't anyone test the drugs to prove their origin? In the interests of public safety I would have thought they ought to do at least that. I think there are many lessons to be learnt from examining her case.

You threw your hat into the ring when you made a mean-spirited attack on Slim Pickins (#746 above) for simply posing a question that was being commonly asked eight years ago when you were caught trying to flee Laos with $50,000.

My apologies to Slim. .... as for the fleeing.... I and my children were being evacuated by the Australian Embassy following the kidnapping of my husband. That cash I was carrying was a payroll funds for my subcontractors. I declared it at the border but that never made the papers. It was a non event, and returned to me at the court six months later along with the money the Laos authorities froze in my account.

Laos didn't have ATM's and cheque clearing stations. The banking was such that you'd reverse your pick up to the bank and they'd load your money into rubbish bags and then you'd drive off. lol. hence why the majority of foriegn investors, including the embassy frequently take cash in and over the border to conduct business transactions. It's perfectly legal. Hence why the Governor of Laos relaxed the laws to enable people to do this as every day practice.

The media always puts their own spin on things to sell papers. Thank god the Australian Government knew what was going on.

I might have believed the undies story had they been mens undies.... extra strong elastic and pocket in the front!

 

[Calliope]

I might have believed the undies story had they been mens undies.... extra strong elastic and pocket in the front!

That adds weight to your story. The Laos police must have been pretty dumb. It would take a real live four-footed mule to carry 160Kg.:horse:

 

[pilots]

Mercedes has a new modelling shoot with AusRotary.

Can't post the image as it contains graphic scenes involving animals.

See: Post 647 at the following link:

http://ausrotary.com/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=163101&st=0&sk=t&sd=a&start=20

Col, are all them posters on that site part of the world wide following that the DRUG MULE has??

 

[Agentm]

kay

i assume here you may have contact with tony wilson.. if so is there any chance you can ask tony wilson to put a few posts here?

the debate is at times interesting.. often extremely emotional. tony wilson would be a brilliant addition

just a thought

 

[Go Nuke]

Guilty or not the sentence she got was HUGELY excessive in my opinion!!

Pot doesnt kill people like heroin, and Ive not heard of people killing other people to fund the pot smoking habit rofl.

The long sentence is the only injustice imo.:bong:

 

[pilots]

Guilty or not the sentence she got was HUGELY excessive in my opinion!!

Pot doesnt kill people like heroin, and Ive not heard of people killing other people to fund the pot smoking habit rofl.

The long sentence is the only injustice imo.:bong:

Yes I agree, but if our government had not stepped in, the other short sentence was the bullet. She is one very lucky MULE. How many more sleeps Zacko.

 

[Patsy]

Guilty or not the sentence she got was HUGELY excessive in my opinion!!

Pot doesnt kill people like heroin, and Ive not heard of people killing other people to fund the pot smoking habit rofl.

The long sentence is the only injustice imo.:bong:

Schapelle was found guilty based on the MJ being in her bag and the testimony of a customs officer. All other forensic evidence was simply not available to her to be heard at trial. It is completely appropriate and warranted that the verdict and sentence be challenged. The lack of proper customs and police procedures, the trial and her sentence are an outstanding example of an extremely sick and unhealthy judicial system.

 

[FPSS]

I sent Tony Wilson an email alerting him to your kind invitation. Not sure if he will find his way here... is really busy with his job.

In any case, his book has a section in the back called 'Facts and the Myths'. I think it is worth looking at because it actually conflicts with what the media put out, and hence, the basis of a lot of misconceptions.

It provides the answers to questions like:

Did Schapelle travel regularly to Bali?
Was was she going there?
Why was her sister there?
Why did she take her BB there?
Did her sister own a surf shop?

.... and a whole bunch of other facts written by Tony Wilson, who was at the time the Chief Police Reporter at the Gold Coast Bulletin.

An interesting read: titled Schapelle - the facts, the evidence, the truth.

 

[Patsy]

Yes I agree, but if our government had not stepped in, .....

Pilot - where did you source this info from?

 

[ewann]

Yes I agree, but if our government had not stepped in...

I'd also like to know the source.

Schapelle was found guilty based on the MJ being in her bag and the testimony of a customs officer. All other forensic evidence was simply not available to her to be heard at trial. It is completely appropriate and warranted that the verdict and sentence be challenged. The lack of proper customs and police procedures, the trial and her sentence are an outstanding example of an extremely sick and unhealthy judicial system.

It's a pity that the customs officer didn't speak fluent English, let alone conversational English, as this would have allowed for some dialogue to take place-possibly making sure that nothing was lost in translation. Heaps of information can be taken out of context and misconstrued when one doesn't fully understand the language. Also seems a bit tragic, to me, that the defence team wasn't allowed to cross examine the "witness". :headshake

Patsy, you're spot on about the "sick and unhealthy judicial system." It is disastrous to human rights world wide to allow such practices (or lack there of) to occur. We must not sit by idly-we must be the voices saying this injustice is unacceptable and will not be tolerated. We aren't just talking about Schapelle, we are talking about our own rights. To Finish FPSS's quote: "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly." - MLK, Jr.

 

[ZackW]

Pilot - where did you source this info from?

He has no source for anything. Just look at his posting history, and the vile comments throughout. He reproduces one smear after another as fed by the media, clearly relishing that poor womans suffering. He has nothing to offer except of foul comments. Sick.

For realism, Schu's posts, which are long since buried, provide a reasonable reflection. She never had a trial or a chance, her human rights were abused systematically, and the sentence was racist/political (3/4 years would have been the norm).

I will re-post Schu's posts below.

 

[ZackW]

Post 1:

I came across this thread quite randomly when I was searching something regarding Schapelle Corby, and having read the whole thread through, I felt compelled to post. My goal is to work as a human rights lawyer. For a number of years now, I have been involved with many organisations and causes, everything from the death penalty to rape in the Congo to specific cases. Schapelle Corby is only one of those.

I first took interest in her situation with regard to the fairness of her trial and the broader context of Indonesia's legal system with respect to international standards. I did not initially concern myself with questions relating to her guilt or innocence. However, over time, with extensive research, including access to official court documents, I have become entirely convinced of her innocence.

I will try to answer some of the points raised in this thread and am happy to answer any questions that are thrown at me about the situation. I also strongly suggest that everyone posting here, with an interest, get a copy of Tony Wilson's book, Schapelle, as that is a very detailed account of everything that has transpired, with accuracy.

Schapelle never carried her boogieboard bag to the customs counter, so she could never have identified the difference in weight from what was normal. She noticed the bag sitting away from the other bags that were waiting for passengers to pick up and when she approached it, she saw that the handle had been broken. She was miffed about this because she had only just had it repaired before the trip. She also noticed that the zips were done up in a different place to where she had done them up. She was struggling with her other bags and one of her friends told James to help her. It was James who lugged the bag to the customs counter, not Schapelle.

Under the Indonesian Criminal Code (KUHAP), two pieces of evidence are required for conviction. One of these was the fact that the mairjuana was found in her bag. The other was that the customs officer claimed she refused to open her bag because she said she had some marijuana. Schapelle disputes this: she says that she opened the bag for him quite willingly and reeled back at the smell (that emanated because the vacuum sealed bags had been cut) and that she only ever said that the bag was hers, not the marijuana itself; indeed that she denied that the marijuana was hers. Obviously this is a case of his word against hers. However, it is worth considering a few things. First, what person, guilty or innocent, would admit to having and owning the marijuana? That would seem a strange way to behave. Second, the custom's officer's English was incredibly rudimentary to the extent that he could barely communicate. It is perfectly plausible that he misunderstood what was said by her in terms of what she owned. He was backed up on his interpretation of events by a customs supervisor, but this supervisor was not even present when the bag was opened and did not actually witness the exchange.

Schapelle and her family were desperate to have the marijuana tested. She signed a release to allow the AFP to test the drugs. This release is in Tony Wilson's book and on record with the Australian Consulate in Indonesia and AFP; unfortunately I do not have access to a copy to attach or post online. It was the Indonesian prosecutors who refused to have the testing done, stating that it 'wasn't necessary'.

Schapelle and her family were also desperate to have the vacuum sealed bags fingerprinted. They were initially told that too many people had touched the bag so there was no point. It should also be noted that when Schapelle was arrested, a multitude of law enforcement officials handled the bags without gloves, making no attempt to preserve the evidence. Then it was discovered that there were two bags: an inner and an outer one. When they asked in open court for the inner bag to be tested, one of the judges reached across and touched the inner bag himself and said that he would 'consider it'. The request was subsequently denied.

At the very least, this raises two questions. One, why did the Indonesians specifically prevent the testing of the marijuana and the bags when to find that it was from Australia and that Schapelle's fingerprints were on the bag would have meant certain guilt? Two, if Schapelle was guilty, why would she and her family have repeatedly requested the tests?

In addition to this, Schapelle and her sister and friend, on the night she was arrested, requested that all the baggage be weighed. This was crucial. When they checked in at Brisbane airport, all the luggage was weighed and the total weight recorded on one ticket. Had they done this at the Bali end as well, the two weights could have been compared. If they were the same, the drugs were in there on check-in and she was likely guilty. But if there was a 4kg difference, the drugs were put in later, which would have raised serious doubts. The Bali authorities had no interest in doing this. Once again, why would Schapelle and her family and friends requested this if there was any chance she or they were guilty?

The Corbys also immediately requested that QANTAS and Brisbane airport provide them with security footage from the area and period in question. They did this within 72 hours and continued to do this when the footage was not forthcoming. They were originally told that it would be preserved and they would get it and then they were given all manner of reasons for not receiving it: that it was already wiped; that the cameras were being serviced; that the cameras were only on when a person of interest was going through the airport; that they needed to get permission from someone else. Eventually it was confirmed that the cameras covering the area in Brisbane airport where Schapelle's bags would have been visible were not working on the day in question. And there were no cameras on the area in Sydney airport where her baggage remained in an unlocked luggage container for several hours.

Schapelle was originally charged with only importation, but right before the trial started, they added the trafficking charge. There was no new evidence that had come to light in the intervening period to support the second charge. Furthermore, the prosecutors never presented evidence to support trafficking. During the trial, the individual who had actually drafted the drugs legislation testified that the trafficking charge required direct support and that merely importing the drugs (having them on you at the airport) didn't amount to trafficking. Yet she was still convicted on this count.

From an evidentiary perspective, the Prosecution never even came up with a suggestion of where the drugs were meant to go. In fact, they never even investigated the Corby family in Bali. If the drugs were meant to be disseminated to Schapelle's sister's family, why was this not made clear with evidence and, more to the point, why was there no attempt to even establish that was the case? A number of people involved in supplying drugs in Bali were questioned (by private individuals) and they said that if the Corbys were involved in drugs to that extent, they would have known about it, but they didn't.

Moreover, the Australian police never even investigated the Corbys. By this I mean they never even sat down to question any of them about the matter. Now, if a person in Australia is thought to be part of a drug-smuggling ring, which is the suggestion about the Corbys here, the AFP would be concerned about it. Yet they weren't concerned about the Corbys at all.

Yes, Mercedes smoked marijuana and maybe took a couple of pills over the years. But, at the end of the day, who hasn't done that or had a relative who has done that? It doesn't automatically translate that you are an international trafficker. Yes, she lied about that initially. But who wouldn't do that with a sister facing jail time? It is perfectly understandable and hardly significant. Bear in mind that she won the defamation trial against Today Tonight. Channel 7, with all their resources (apparently they spent $5 million on their defence) couldn't find a skerrick of evidence to support the claim that she was significantly involved with drugs.

Yes, Schapelle's father was fined for possession years ago. He was at a party that had marijuana and the police turned up and due to an injury he couldn't run away. This is all on record for anyone who wishes to investigate. Once again, if you looked into the history of most families, I think you would find something similar. He did have associations with people who were involved with drugs, including his neighbour, but police investigated that years ago and he was never even remotely connected to their activities. This is, once again, all on record and in fact, Queensland Police stated it publically after the ABC aired a report implicating him. I would strongly suggest that everyone in Australia has, at some point, had contact unwittingly with people associated with drugs, whether it be a neighbour, a work colleague or a friend of a friend.

continued............