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Law graduates 'won't go back to jail in Brazil'
Peter Dominiczak3 Aug 2009
Two British law graduates will not have to return to prison over allegations that they fraudulently claimed they had been robbed in Brazil, their lawyer said today.
Renato Tonini said he felt confident that even if Shanti Andrews and Rebecca Turner were convicted, they would not be jailed.
Miss Andrews and Miss Turner, both 23, were freed on bail on Saturday and were today staying in a hotel ahead of their trial in Rio de Janeiro on Wednesday.
Mr Tonini said the women, both University of Sussex graduates on a nine-month trip around the world, will have the charge of attempted insurance fraud read to them in English during the hearing.
Mr Tonini said: "I'm very confident that they will not be going back to prison. Even if they are convicted, I think a fine would solve the problem."
The pair are alleged to have told police belongings worth £1,000 had been stolen during a bus journey. Some of the items were later found in their room in Copacabana.
Describing their time in jail, Miss Turner said: "It was a living nightmare."
Reader views (2)
@ Keith Lonsdale, Doncaster
Do you really think if everyone behaved like saints when it came to insurance claims that suddenly all the insurance companies would drop their prices?
- Frank, Home Counties, England., 03/08/2009 12:10
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"Law graduates 'won't go back to jail in Brazil'"- Pity, insurance fraud costs all of us an a fortune in increased premiums. It would have been better to make an example of them, especially given their chosen profession.
- Keith Lonsdale, Doncaster, 03/08/2009 11:35
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