Two of the nicest people you could ever meet & Crawley Town through & through.
Totally agree Thad - Paul & Iris were ever present on the away coaches for years - then a couple of years ago told me that they wouldn't be watching or travelling - I assume that's when the moved away from Crawley.
This must have been an absolute nightmare for them. I hope that they do get over it.
This must have been an absolute nightmare for them. I hope that they do get over it.
I cannot even imagine the hell they have endured Alain, is there any way we could get a message to them just to let them know that so many of us care..?
Thad, - I'll try and find their E mail address and make contact with them - I haven't got their new postal address and they may have changed E mails but will have a go.
This must have been an absolute nightmare for them. I hope that they do get over it.
I cannot even imagine the hell they have endured Alain, is there any way we could get a message to them just to let them know that so many of us care..?
It would be good if someone like fans rep made club aware and the long standing loyal fans were treated to some hospitality perhaps? We need to pay attention to the community we have and had as well as the diverse community we aim to reach out to.
Thad, - I'll try and find their E mail address and make contact with them - I haven't got their new postal address and they may have changed E mails but will have a go.
Paul and Iris were indeed very devoted fans and it's a shame to see anyone fall from grace like this, but I'd urge a note of caution before assuming too much innocence and naivety. Having read the court transcript (a perk of the job and out of genuine interest) I would comment, as has been reported widely in the media that "the couple were aware of the need for a license to export some of their products after Customs officials impounded their goods in 2009, due to concerns about the production of weapons of mass destruction in Iran."
"However, Mr and Mrs Attwater continued to deal with George, sending him the same parts that had been returned by border customs via a forwarding house in the Netherlands."
In his summing up, Judge Grieve states quite clearly that: “Despite undertaking not to export these goods, you proceeded again to send them out to Malaysia."
So whilst I may concede that they might not have known that the goods were intended for use in a sanctioned country, they did indeed know that they required a license to export them and committed to not doing so without a license.
Had they applied and gained the appropriate export license they would have been afforded some protection under the law. Because they evaded this process, I would suggest to avoid duty, they ended up getting caught on a far grander scale than they would have envisaged.
So yes, it's sad. But let;s not assume that they are entirely without blame here.
They should have told the Judge: "m'lud in mitigation, having followed Crawley Town for many years, we failed to recognise any potential for mounting an attack & are only familiar with offering total ignorance in matters of defence".
