SYDNEY, 28 July 2007 — Australia dropped charges against an Indian doctor accused of involvement in failed British car bombings and released him from custody yesterday, admitting mistakes were made rushing the case to court.
But Australia’s top police officer refused to apologize to Mohammed Haneef after the embarrassing backdown and the medic still faces possible deportation as he adjusts to house arrest after almost four weeks in custody.
Red-faced officials said they withdrew the charge that Haneef “recklessly” supported the terror group behind attempted bombings in Britain last month after a review revealed mistakes in rushing the case to court. It also found there was not enough evidence to support a conviction.
“On my view of the matter a mistake has been made,” Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Damian Bugg told reporters. Bugg described the errors that led to the collapse of the case as “disappointing” and “embarrassing,” adding, “we’re all human.” The case against Haneef, who was arrested on July 2 as he attempted to leave Australia on a one-way ticket to India, has been dogged by controversy and labeled a bumbling “Keystone Cops” investigation by critics.
Haneef, 27, is alleged to have given a mobile phone SIM card last year to a relative subsequently arrested in connection with last month’s failed plot to bomb central London and Glasgow Airport.
The doctor, who has worked as a registrar in a Gold Coast hospital since last September, has denied any involvement with the failed attacks and his relative charged in Britain is not accused of direct involvement in terrorism.
Haneef’s wife, Firdaus, welcomed the news yesterday in India.
“I am extremely happy that finally the day has come when the truth has come out,” she told reporters in the southern city of Bangalore. Firdaus called on Australia to allow Haneef to return home “normally.” She said the family was waiting for a “bridging visa” for Haneef “because I don’t want him to get deported. I want him to come back normally.”
India’s Foreign Ministry said it had instructed the Indian High Commission in Canberra to “support” the doctor’s request for reinstatement of his visa.
“We request that the Australian government grant him a proper visa to come back to India as he has not been charged” with any offense, Minister of State for External Affairs E. Ahamed said.
In Australia, Bugg said one of his prosecutors wrongly claimed at the doctor’s original bail hearing on July 16 that his SIM card was found in a burning car that crashed into Glasgow Airport June 30.
It has since emerged that the SIM card was found eight hours later at a flat in Liverpool, some 300 kilometers (185 miles) from Glasgow, where Haneef’s second cousin was arrested.
He said the official also wrongly told the bail court, based on information provided by Australian Federal Police, that Haneef had shared a flat in Britain with some of the accused bombers before moving to Australia.
