British authorities pay convicted teenager compensation for leaked data

A 19-year-old from Stavanger who has been convicted of conspiracy to commit murder in England will receive £2,750, or about NOK 35,000, from British authorities, Dagbladet reports.

The compensation follows the British prosecution service’s disclosure of sensitive personal information about the teenager to the British press.

The teenager is being held in a prison outside London while the Central Criminal Court, the equivalent of a Norwegian district court, prepares to decide his prison sentence.

After his lawyer, Farid Bouras of Elden law firm, raised the disclosure with the Directorate of Legal Services, the teenager was initially offered £1,000, or just under NOK 13,000.

“On my advice, the 19-year-old chose to reject it. Although the British authorities insisted that it was the only and final offer they would make after sharing the sensitive personal information with the media,” Bouras said.

The authorities later increased the compensation to around NOK 35,000, which the teenager has accepted.

“The court’s sentencing decision is expected shortly. The judgment will almost certainly be appealed to a higher court. We are also examining the possibility of transferring him to Norway to serve his sentence,” Bouras said.

Lawyer criticises investigation

Bouras said he believed the case was marked by significant weaknesses and unanswered questions.

“In my view, the investigations by both Norwegian and British authorities have so many shortcomings that they can be compared to a Swiss cheese full of holes,” he said.

He said the shortcomings had affected legal safeguards and would be central to the further proceedings.

Once the English judgment becomes legally final, Bouras hopes the teenager will be transferred to Norway to serve his sentence.

Three charged in Norway

Norwegian state prosecutor Geir Evanger of the National Authority for Prosecution has charged three young men in Norway with contributing to the murder assignment for which the 19-year-old was sent to England.

The assignment was never completed after English counter-terrorism police raided the hotel room where the teenager was staying in Huddersfield, a city in northern England.

The three men are charged with participating in an organised criminal group that intended to commit murder.

A 17-year-old living in the Stavanger area is alleged to have recruited the 19-year-old to carry out a killing in England. He is also alleged to have maintained regular contact with him by telephone and through the Signal and Snapchat applications.

An 18-year-old boy now living in the Oslo area and a 19-year-old from Stavanger have also been charged.

The charges are brought under Section 275 of the Norwegian Penal Code, which carries a prison sentence of between eight and 21 years.