Teacher who faced death by machine-gun in release bid from Scots jail

A MAN who once faced the death penalty in Thailand for drug smuggling has been transferred to prison in Glasgow to await his release.

Julian Gilbey, 42, was spared execution by machine-gun and instead given a life sentence. He served more than eight years in a Bangkok jail before the Thai authorities agreed to send him to Scotland to see out his sentence.

Under Scots law, Gilbey must be told the minimum term he has to complete – the "punishment part" – before he can apply for parole.

Appearing before Lord Emslie at the High Court in Edinburgh yesterday, the judge was told it was a unique situation. Lord Emslie has requested more information about life sentences in Thailand and the transfer agreement before setting Gilbey's tariff. The case was continued until next month.

Gilbey, a former English language teacher, is from Sussex but has family in Scotland and it was the Scottish Government that handled his transfer.

His counsel, Murray Macara, QC, said Gilbey had been arrested in October 2001 at Bangkok international airport, while waiting to board a flight to Taiwan. He was charged under Thai narcotics legislation and was alleged to have been in possession of 3.3 kilos of heroin in two packets.

Four others were also arrested: a Dutch citizen and his girlfriend, a Thai woman, and two men from Nepal. After a trial lasting about nine months, the only person acquitted was the Thai woman.

"Mr Gilbey and the others were sentenced to death," Mr Macara said. "That was commuted to life imprisonment. He applied to the ministry of foreign affairs in Bangkok to take advantage of prisoner transfer arrangements between Thailand and this country. He arrived at the beginning of March and has been in Barlinnie for the last 20 days or so."

He argued that, when setting the "punishment part" the High Court should select a period as if the offence had been committed in Scotland, where a life sentence was possible but had never been imposed.

Lord Emslie, however, said it was a highly unusual situation and he understood he was not supposed to simply substitute a Scottish sentence for the Thai one.