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| Version 0 | Version 1 |
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| Book page thief sentence halved | Book page thief sentence halved |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| An Iranian scholar who stole pages from priceless books at Oxford's Bodleian library and the British Library has had his sentence halved. | An Iranian scholar who stole pages from priceless books at Oxford's Bodleian library and the British Library has had his sentence halved. |
| Farhad Hakimzadeh, 61, of Knightsbridge, central London, pleaded guilty to 14 counts of theft and was jailed for two years in January 2009. | Farhad Hakimzadeh, 61, of Knightsbridge, central London, pleaded guilty to 14 counts of theft and was jailed for two years in January 2009. |
| Judges at the Appeal Court reduced the sentence to 12 months and a deportation order was overturned. | Judges at the Appeal Court reduced the sentence to 12 months and a deportation order was overturned. |
| He had cut leaves out of precious works and inserted them into his own copies. | He had cut leaves out of precious works and inserted them into his own copies. |
| Smuggled scalpel | Smuggled scalpel |
| Police found the altered editions along with several loose pages in the library at his home. | Police found the altered editions along with several loose pages in the library at his home. |
| British Library staff believe he smuggled a scalpel into the building and positioned himself away from security cameras to commit his crimes. | British Library staff believe he smuggled a scalpel into the building and positioned himself away from security cameras to commit his crimes. |
| The books dated to the 16th Century and all concerned European engagement with the Middle East. | The books dated to the 16th Century and all concerned European engagement with the Middle East. |
| William Boyce QC, for the scholar, pleaded his "philanthropic and charitable works" in mitigation, asking for his jail term to be decreased. | William Boyce QC, for the scholar, pleaded his "philanthropic and charitable works" in mitigation, asking for his jail term to be decreased. |
| Mr Justice Blake, giving the court's judgement, said: "This was not a case of someone stealing to improve his library then preventing scholars from accessing those books in the future. All the books have been recovered and so have the pages. | Mr Justice Blake, giving the court's judgement, said: "This was not a case of someone stealing to improve his library then preventing scholars from accessing those books in the future. All the books have been recovered and so have the pages. |
| "He has suffered a considerable humiliation and loss of reputation at the age of 61 years." | "He has suffered a considerable humiliation and loss of reputation at the age of 61 years." |
| The decision means that Hakimzadeh, having served 104 days, will be released in 78 days time. | The decision means that Hakimzadeh, having served 104 days, will be released in 78 days time. |
| A spokesman for the British Library said: "Although we are frustrated that the reduced sentence does not seem to us to reflect the severity of the crime of which Hakimzadeh was convicted, we continue to pursue a number of routes with the aim of achieving redress for the damage he caused." |