British accountant sentenced to 17 years in Myanmar

A court in Myanmar has sentenced a 30-year-old British man to 17 years in jail in a case that has attracted criticism after he was held for more than a year without charge.

Niranjan Rasalingam, an accountant from Croydon, was arrested in 2014 alongside three Indian nationals on suspicion of stealing 25.2m kyats (£13,744) using cloned ATM cards in Yangon.

Poor conditions during their incarceration and a confused and lengthy trial have mired the case in controversy. Although Rasalingam's sentencing was on 16 June, his pro-bono lawyer was not present and his translator left early.

"I went to the courthouse to try to get a clear explanation of his sentence after receiving distressed calls from Niranjan," Nadia Hardman, an international legal consultant based in Yangon, told the Guardian in an email.

"Niranjan was confused and said he was facing a 17-year sentence but that he could reduce it to nine years if he paid a 400 lakh (£23,000) fine within one week,"

she added.