'I was set up by drug runner': British pensioner on death row in Egypt insists he thought he was transporting incense on his yacht

Charles Ferndale is accused of attempting to smuggle three tons of cannabis
The 74-year-old insists he thought he was helping move incense for a friend
Admitted he had been a 'fool' and made 'disastrous life decisions'
Pensioner was arrested aboard a vessel in Marsa Alam in 2011
By JILL REILLY

QENA: -- A British pensioner sentenced to death for drug smuggling by an Egyptian court on Monday cliams he set up by a drug runner.

Charles Ferndale, 74, is accused of attempting to smuggle three tons of the cannabis product hashish, worth almost £3million into Egypt aboard his boat and being part of an ‘international gang’.

But Mr Ferndale insists that he thought he was helping to move a cargo of incense from Aden in Yemen to Aqaba in Jordan for an Egyptian friend who had lent him money for yacht fuel.

The pensioner, three men from the Seychelles and one from Pakistan were arrested by armed police aboard a vessel near the Red Sea coastal town of Marsa Alam in 2011.

The Pakistani man is said to have fled the scene and to have been sentenced to death in absentia.

Mr Ferndale gave an interview to The Daily Telegraph from his prison cell in Qena, in the desert halfway between Hurghada and Luxor.

He had previously been held in Hurghada prison which he said had worse conditions.

He admitted he had been a 'fool' and made 'disastrous life decisions', but said insisted he was set up by an Egyptian friend he called 'Gamal.'

A wildlife conservationist in Pakistan, Mr Ferndale admitted he could not explain part of his life story 'because it would get me killed'.

Full story: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2336158/I-set-drug-runner-British-pensioner-death-row-Egypt-insists-thought-transporting-incense-yacht.html

-- Daily Mail 2013-06-05

Death sentence for transporting medicine? Bit excessive.

Full story: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2336158/British-pensioner-death-row-Egypt-insists-thought-transporting-incense-yacht.html

The trouble with Daily Mail links is... I always get distracted by the stuff on the right.

The Pensioner has every right to feel incensed at being conned this way

A wildlife conservationist in Pakistan, Mr Ferndale admitted he could not explain part of his life story 'because it would get me killed'.

So he'll take it to his grave after death row. Makes perfect sense.

Didn't know what was going on my eye...

He most likely didn't have the money, the balls or the knowledge to pay the Egyptian guards

like the Pakistani guy did...

Wow. Death penalty for three tons of hash??? It's a victimless crime that certainly doesn't deserve the death penalty.

Wow. Death penalty for three tons of hash??? It's a victimless crime that certainly doesn't deserve the death penalty.

Well they couldn't give him life he's already used it.

Titter titter

den

Mr Ferndale admitted he could not explain part of his life story 'because it would get me killed'.

Odd argument for someone facing execution, although following the "I thought it was incense" defense, maybe quite consistent for Mr. Ferndale.

Hmmmm...the facts don't add up here...a bloke on a UK pension has enough cash to buy a yacht big enough to carry a 3 ton dead weight cargo.

Hmmmm...the facts don't add up here...a bloke on a UK pension has enough cash to buy a yacht big enough to carry a 3 ton dead weight cargo.

But needs to borrow money for fuel?

Hmmmm...the facts don't add up here...a bloke on a UK pension has enough cash to buy a yacht big enough to carry a 3 ton dead weight cargo.

What doesn't add up ? the guy was over 65, therefore in UK terms a pensioner. He may have a lot of pensions as well as the state one. He also presumably saved during his working years. He could have been a $ millionaire but would still be a pensioner

It would be very easy for a pensioner to afford a yacht had he a good job when he worked.

According to the OP, he was a wildlife conservationist in Pakistan. I am not sure, but I don't know that a job like that would lead him to be a wealthy retiree.

Perhaps he had been involved in smuggling drugs before and this is how he had enough money for a yacht.

I don't think a big drug dealer would turn over that kind of drugs to somebody they didn't know and trust.

They all say that.

The Pensioner has every right to feel incensed at being conned this way

He didn't realize the plod were on his scent.

They've got the evidence, but can they make it (jos)stick?

It was said he was planning to deliver them via a Roma.

Hmmmm...the facts don't add up here...a bloke on a UK pension has enough cash to buy a yacht big enough to carry a 3 ton dead weight cargo.

Used yachts are not expensive, it all depends on their make, their condition and their equipment. In some places their owners are glad to be rid of them in order to escape the constant drain on their resources (marina fees can soon mount up to be several times what the boat is actually worth!) I have in fact met two people who cut up their boats and burnt them just to avoid the constant financial drain.

Someone who was formerly the owner of a home in the UK should be easily able to afford to buy a pre-owned forty foot yacht and well respected brands should be within budget. If the sailor does not intend to return to Europe in order to pay 20% Value Added Tax then the USA is the place to buy a boat.

Curiously it is alleged that even British Made boats can loose their VAT-paid status if they are outside European waters for more than three years. One case that I heard of concerned a British boat-builder who built himself a boat in England and sailed around the world. On his return over three years later the Customs & Excise people valued the boat and then wanted to charge VAT AGAIN! The man sailed the boat up a beach at high tide and then set fire to it!

Some European countries have their own laws which fail to comply with The Treaty of Rome (free movement of goods and services) If a boat is kept in Spanish waters or on Spanish land for six months it becomes a Spanish boat and Spanish special Value Added Tax of 9% of the boats value is charged!

Hmmmm...the facts don't add up here...a bloke on a UK pension has enough cash to buy a yacht big enough to carry a 3 ton dead weight cargo.

A friends boat, a Colvic Springtide, that is only 24 feet long has turned out to be about two tons heavier than the manufacturers official weight! One of its previous owners (deceased long ago) was the Commodore of a sailing club. My guess is that it was the Commodore who had the boat's long keel filled with concrete as some people used to reckon that those boats did not stand-up to their sails very well. Huge boats are not required for carrying a couple of tons.

The Pensioner has every right to feel incensed at being conned this way

He didn't realize the plod were on his scent.

They've got the evidence, but can they make it (jos)stick?

It was said he was planning to deliver them via a Roma.

No wonder the cops sniffed him out !

Wow. Death penalty for three tons of hash??? It's a victimless crime that certainly doesn't deserve the death penalty.

Ye es. Victimless crimes against the State! A worldwide epidemic. it is, but yes the death penalty does not enrich anyone.

That's very barbaric, especially for people just trying to make a buck out of a pastime. Blow a bit of hashl Listen to some music!

Incense? Was that what they said the smell was? He's nearly as bad as the onion farmer. Hard to believe.

Anyway the alcohol lobby is not going to allow that sort of competition. particularly where they find it difficult to get in the door anyway.

How many times do people need to be told: Don't transport others people's belongings internationally. If you do, don't complain when you end up in jail. A mule is a mule.

Anyway, it sounds fishy.

Edited June 5, 201313 yr by connda

Lets see, message to self, DO NOT acquire any Egyptian friends that need goods transported to other countries.

Edited June 5, 201313 yr by rotary

In some places their owners are glad to be rid of them in order to escape the constant drain on their resources (marina fees can soon mount up to be several times what the boat is actually worth!) I have in fact met two people who cut up their boats and burnt them just to avoid the constant financial drain.

I read a short while ago that the two happiest days of that particular boat owner's possession was the day he bought it and the day he sold it.

refuse to believe he didnt know <deleted> ...now bleating for help ...

3 tonnes of hashish and he thought it is incense...

yeah right...

It never ceases to amaze me that drug runners pick the worst places in the world to do their business. Last month, there was another death penalty for a smuggler in Malaysia. So, the word is out, its no joking business that some countries have zero tolerance for drugs. Whether you think drugs are harmless or not (in comparison to alcohol) is not relevant. Load your boat up with San Miguel Light and the customs inspector will probably just kick back with you and throw down a cool one. Otherwise, don't whine about the hammer falling. Another consideration.....3 tons of drugs could definitely piss off the local cartel, if the man was doing this without "consideration". Tom Foolery. When Hash becomes legal, I might join you in a smoke, but for now....I am not willing to pay the piper.

come on, conned? really ?

that is like giving 100 million of dowry like that stupid guy did in the report yesterday

was he not in international waters ?

if you know you are going to be sentenced to death, why not give up a nice fight when you are on the boat ?

On reading the OP, all I can conclude is that there is a distinct difference in the way incense smells and the way cannabis smells. Could the pensioner (being alive through the 60's and 70's) be that naive / stupid not to recognize the distinct smell in the stowage of his yacht?

I find it quite difficult to believe him.

Hmmmm...the facts don't add up here...a bloke on a UK pension has enough cash to buy a yacht big enough to carry a 3 ton dead weight cargo.

But needs to borrow money for fuel?

The fuel for a yacht is the wind ?

If he wasn't in a hurry to do the drug run, there would be no hurry to buy fuel ? If you are in a rush to get somewhere, a yacht is not the best means of transport.

Maybe much more to this story than reported here

Edited June 6, 201313 yr by attento

I think the fuel for a sail boat is the wind, but the OP only says it is a yacht.