The Freshwater Five

The Freshwater Five – In a continuing series of an ongoing relationship with the ordinary and everyday, I have reached out to others for them to share with me the things that form their everyday. These are the things that they might reach for in different times of the day yet do so automatically, without much thought. For example, ‘Maldon Sea Salt’ goes on pretty much everything I eat which, when given further analysis, acts in some way as my maintained and physical connection to Europe – the salt from the sea is an essential part of my physicality.

‘The Freshwater Five – this is a slight change on the second series and is focussed on a probable miscarriage of justice and how the ordinary and everyday of four fishermen and their friend, from the Isle of Wight, were accused and convicted of conspiracy to import cocaine worth £53m in May 2010. The five men were sentenced to a total of 104 years for what some people are saying is excessive for the supposed role of “just being couriers”.

Two of the men, Jonathan Beere and Daniel Payne, were jailed for 24 and 18 years respectively.

There is currently an appeal based on new radar evidence that there is no way the fishing trawler they were in, the Galwad-Y-Mor, was able to cross paths with the Oriane, a container ship sailing from Brazil, to collect the drugs in the first place.

The appeal hearing was held in February 2021 and judgement is expected at a later date. UPDATE: The appeal failed.