British Muslim's lawyer to appeal against death penalty

The lawyer for a British Muslim sentenced to hang for the abduction and murder of US reporter Daniel Pearl today said he was ready for a battle in Pakistan’s appeals courts that could last more than a year.

Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, a former public schoolboy from Wanstead, east London, was yesterday convicted in a heavily guarded court in Hyderabad prison. Three Pakistani accomplices were jailed for life.

Pearl was kidnapped in the southern port city of Karachi in January.

A month later a gruesome video-tape showing the Wall Street Journal reporter having his throat cut was handed to US officials.

Saeed’s lawyer, Abdul Waheed Katpur, said he would file an appeal against yesterday’s ruling before Friday.

The first court of appeal is the provincial High Court and proceedings there could take five months to complete, he said.

Depending on the outcome there, Saeed could then appeal to the Supreme Court. The whole process could take up to a year, Katpur said.

Before appeal hearings can begin, dozens of documents and other evidence used in the trial would have to be translated from Urdu into English - taking two months at least, he said.

Saeed’s lawyer is arguing that the trial judge ignored defence evidence and accepted only the prosecution’s side of the story.

But if Katpur wins in the High Court and Saeed is acquitted, prosecutors are certain to appeal to the Supreme Court to restore the conviction.

‘‘So either way it will have to go to the Supreme Court,’’ Katpur said. ‘‘This is likely to take another five or six months.’’

And he predicted the appeal process would produce surprises.

‘‘Anything can happen in Pakistan,’’ he said.