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9/11 arrest payout ruling fought | 9/11 arrest payout ruling fought |
(30 minutes later) | |
The government is to appeal against a court judgement that a man wrongly accused of training the 9/11 hijackers should be eligible for compensation. | |
The Court of Appeal ruled in favour of Algerian pilot Lotfi Raissi, 33, of west London, earlier this month. | The Court of Appeal ruled in favour of Algerian pilot Lotfi Raissi, 33, of west London, earlier this month. |
The appeal judges said there were "serious defaults" in the way police and the Crown Prosecution Service had dealt with his case. | |
Mr Raissi was in prison for five months following a US extradition request. | Mr Raissi was in prison for five months following a US extradition request. |
'Clarify compensation' | 'Clarify compensation' |
A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: "We are appealing on a point of law/principle about boundaries of the state compensation scheme. | A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: "We are appealing on a point of law/principle about boundaries of the state compensation scheme. |
"We need to clarify how far government compensation goes." | "We need to clarify how far government compensation goes." |
The judges' ruling meant the government would have to reconsider its refusal of Mr Raissi's claim for compensation. | |
Mr Raissi said that he wanted an apology and that his claim may run into millions of pounds. | Mr Raissi said that he wanted an apology and that his claim may run into millions of pounds. |
He was living in the UK in 2001 when he was arrested and held at the top-security Belmarsh prison. | He was living in the UK in 2001 when he was arrested and held at the top-security Belmarsh prison. |
In April 2002, a judge ruled that there was no evidence connecting Mr Raissi to terrorism. | |
Unable to work | |
Speaking after the appeal judgement, Mr Raissi said he had suffered a miscarriage of justice and had been "completely exonerated". | |
He said his wrongful arrest had left him blacklisted as a pilot and unable to work. | |
In giving the court's judgment, Lord Justice Hooper said: "The public labelling of the appellant as a terrorist by the authorities in this country, and particularly by the CPS, over a period of many months has had and continues to have, so it is said, a devastating effect on his life and on his health. | |
"He considers that, unless he receives a public acknowledgement that he is not a terrorist, he will be unable to get his life back together again." | |
The High Court had previously said that Mr Raissi's application for compensation was not valid because it involved the extradition process and not the domestic criminal system. |