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A British and a German tourist accused of smuggling ancient shards out of Iraq have appeared in yellow detainees uniforms in a Baghdad court

By SAMYA KULLAB Associated Press

May 15, 2022, 4:37 PM

3 min read

BAGHDAD -- A British and a German tourist accused of smuggling ancient shards out of Iraq appeared in a Baghdad court in yellow detainees' uniforms Sunday, telling judges they had not acted with criminal intent and had no idea they might have broken local laws.

The trial of Jim Fitton, 66, is grabbing international attention at a time when Iraq seeks to open up its nascent tourism sector. The session also revealed first details about a second defendant, identified as Volker Waldmann of Germany.

The three-judge panel in Baghdads felony court scheduled the next hearing for May 22. The court must determine whether the defendants had sought to profit by taking the 12 items, which were found in their possession as they attempted to fly out of Baghdad airport on March 20.

Fitton and Waldmann appeared in court in detainees' yellow and were asked to explain their actions.

Waldmann said the two items found in his possession were not his and instead had been given to him by Fitton to carry. But did you put them in your bag?" asked head judge Jaber Abdel Jabir. "Didnt you know these were Iraqi antiquities?

Waldmann said he didn't pick up the items from the site, only agreed to carry them for Fitton.

Fitton said he suspected the items he collected were ancient fragments, but that at the time I didnt know about Iraqi laws, or that taking the shards was not permitted. Fitton said as geologist he was in the habit of collecting such fragments as a hobby and had no intention to sell them.

He said it was not clear to him at the time that picking them up from the site was a criminal offence. There were fences, no guards or signage, at the sites he told the court.

These places, in name and by definition, are ancient sites," Jabir responded. One doesnt have to say it is forbidden.

When Fitton said some of the shards were no larger than my fingernail , Jabir said this was not relevant. Size doesnt matter, he told him.

Based on the law both men could face the death penalty, an outcome that legal experts said was unlikely. British and German embassy officials were present at the court but have not issued detailed public statements about the case in order not to jeopardize the proceedings, they said.

The defense plans to submit more evidence to clear the men, Fittons defense lawyer Thair Soud told The Associated Press. This includes testimony from government officials present at the site where the fragments were collected, he said.

(Their testimony) is pending approval from their official directorates, he said.

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British, German deny smuggling antiquities in Iraq court ...