Mother of British teen found guilty over false Cyprus rape claim tells ITV News daughter suffering from PTSD
Video report by ITV News correspondent Paul Davies
The mother of a British teenager who has been found guilty of lying about being gang-raped in Cyprus has told ITV News that her daughter is suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and that the family will fight the ruling all the way to the European Court of Human Rights.
It comes as the Government said it is "seriously concerned" about whether the woman had a fair trial.
The mother, who is not being named due to her daughter's right to anonymity, said she was "very disappointed" with the judge's "absolutely astonishing verdict", which she saw as a "set back".
Earlier on Monday, the 19-year-old was convicted of a single count of public mischief at a packed Famagusta District Court in Paralimni.
The judge said the woman made the claim because she was "embarrassed" about being filmed having sex.
The 19-year-old maintains that she was raped but pressured into changing her account by Cypriot police.
On Monday evening, the Foreign Office said it will be speaking to Cypriot authorities about the "deeply distressing case" and that it is "seriously concerned about the fair trial guarantees" surrounding it.
In response, the family said they were "glad" of the involvement and "optimistic about the outcomes they could achieve for us".
ITV News Correspondent Paul Davies said it is "unusual" that the Foreign Office has said it has "serious concerns about fair trial guarantees".
The teenager initially said she was attacked by up to 12 Israeli tourists in an Ayia Napa hotel on July 17.
However, 10 days later she retracted her statement.
The men were all arrested, but later freed and returned home.
After withdrawing her allegation, the woman was arrested by Cypriot authorities and spent more than a month in prison before she was granted bail at the end of August.
She has not been allowed to leave the island since she was detained.
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The teenager's mother described her daughter's treatment in Cyprus as a "violation" of human rights as the case against her hinged on a retracted statement she signed while alone in the police station, without a lawyer, following questioning by detectives that was not recorded.
She called the whole situation a "nightmare" and alleged that the Israeli men who were initially arrested "had legal representation within a matter of hours whereas my daughter wasn't offered legal representation at all, throughout the whole thing".
The mother told ITV News Correspondent Paul Davies that her daughter is "resolute to see justice" and will appeal the ruling.
"If we end up in the European Court of Human Rights, that's great," she added.
However, she added she did not have faith in Cyprus' justice system.
The teenager will be sentenced on January 7 and faces up to a year in jail and a fine of £1,500 when sentenced.
Her legal team have asked for a suspended sentence.
"It would be an absolute injustice if they decide to imprison her for any more days than the four-and-a-half weeks she's already spent in prison," the woman's mother said.
Adding that while her daughter was no longer jailed, she has had to remain in Cyprus and is "effectively in a gilded cage".
The mother said her daughter had been diagnosed with PTSD by a psychologist from the UK but "can't be treated for it while she's in Cyprus".
She said her daughter has "PTSD attacks" when she hears loud, male, foreign voices, and is suffering from insomnia, and that her "overriding issue" was to get her daughter back to the UK so that she could seek treatment.
In court, the teenager had said she was "forced" by police to change her story, telling the judge she was "scared for my life" .
The 19-year-old added: "I didn't think I would leave that police station without signing that statement."
Cypriot police insisted she willingly signed the retraction statement.
Speaking in court on Monday, Judge Michalis Papathanasiou said the woman "gave police a false rape claim, while having full knowledge that this was a lie.
"The reason why she initially gave false statements was because she realised that she was being recorded while she was having sexual intercourse and so she was placed in a difficult position and felt embarrassed.
"She then apologised saying she had made a mistake by filing a false statement."
He said the woman "did not make a good impression, she did not tell the truth, and tried to mislead the court" during her evidence.
"There was no rape, or violence, and police had carried out a thorough investigation making all necessary arrests," the judge added.
But the teenager's lawyers have criticised the legal process, arguing the trial did not properly examine the original allegation she had been raped.
None of the Israelis gave evidence during the trial and the woman's legal team criticised the judge's refusal to consider evidence of the alleged rape.
Her lawyers said the video found on some of the Israelis' mobile phones showed her having consensual sex with one of the group while others try to enter the room as she tells them to leave.
Michael Polak, a lawyer from the Justice Abroad group, which is assisting the teenager, said: "Shutting down questioning from our Cypriot advocates and the production of evidence into the trial on a handful of occasions the judge stridently stated 'this is not a rape case, I will not consider whether she was raped or not'.
"We have found it incredibly difficult to follow this logic given that an essential element of the offence is for there to be a 'false statement concerning an imaginary offence' and therefore, clearly if the teenager was raped, she cannot be guilty."
Alexandra Patsalides, a human rights lawyer at Equality Now, which focuses on using the law to protect and promote women and girls' rights around the world, said her treatment by the Cypriot police, the criminal justice system and local media was "extremely problematic".
"It is the duty of the investigators and the prosecution to thoroughly examine the circumstances of each case in an impartial manner and not base their decisions on negative gender-based stereotypes, or, as appears in this instance, pejorative attitudes about young people who visit Ayia Napa," she said.
"There are numerous reasons why a victim may retract an allegation of sexual assault.
"In some instances, victims are subjected to pressure to withdraw an allegation by family members, the perpetrator or persons linked to them, or even by law enforcement, as it appears may have occurred in this instance.
"When a rape victim retracts an allegation, police authorities should assess all the reasons why."
She added: "As has emerged from expert witness testimonies in this case, the police did not undertake a comprehensive or gender-sensitive investigation.
"Finding her guilty while there remains the need for thorough investigations to be made regarding the alleged rape, procedures followed by authorities and the young woman's treatment in custody, represent a serious failure of Cyprus's legal system to pursue justice and to be seen to be doing so.
"We call for a thorough assessment and evaluation of the way the authorities have conducted their investigation throughout this case and their treatment of the young British woman."
The case attracted protests in Cyprus, with demonstrators from the Network Against Violence Against Women attending court wearing white scarves around their faces depicting lips sewn together.
But Nir Yaslovitzh, a lawyer representing some of the Israelis arrested over the alleged rape, welcomed the verdict.
"I applaud the court's decision to convict the girl," he said.
"I hope the court will find it appropriate to aggravate the punishment imposed on the girl, who refuses to this day to take responsibility for the horrible act she's done against the boys."