- Caitlin Powell
- BBC
Moroccan police told Oliver Andrews that half of his money was counterfeit, according to his family
The family of a British national arrested in Morocco said they were concerned for his safety after being left untreated for five weeks.
Oliver Andrews was visiting Marrakech last November and was arrested after being accused of possession of counterfeit money.
The 29-year-old’s family said he denied the charges against him and did not get any help from the British authorities.
Britain’s Foreign and Development Office said it had provided assistance.
The BBC asked the Consulate General of the Kingdom of Morocco for comment.
On November 10, 2022, Andrews, who is from Bournemouth, went with a friend to a nightclub on the last night of their trip.
“Pressed”
His family said that the next morning he was arrested by Moroccan police, and Andrews was told that half of his money was counterfeit.
The family added that the two men did not have the opportunity to use an official interpreter or the opportunity to speak to a lawyer.
They also said that the two men were “pressured to sign foreign papers”.
Andrews’ attorney in Morocco, speaking through the family, said the two men were charged with possession and distribution of counterfeit money within Morocco and with forming an organized criminal group.
Andrews’ family said he was diagnosed with heart disease in 2021 and requires daily treatment.
She added that he was not allowed to have his medication until his lawyer was able to arrange her arrival on 16 December.
The family said: “The British Embassy in Morocco and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Development refused to intervene.”
She added that the British Embassy in Morocco and the British Foreign and Development Office had been informed of Andrews’ heart condition and medical needs.
image copyright Alanna Cornick
“We just want the embassy to do its job,” said Alanna Kornick, Andrews’ partner.
The family said that when Andrews was visited by his lawyer, he was “in a very poor mental and physical condition”.
She added that because he did not take his medication, “his blood circulation slowed down.”
The family also said they had sent money to the embassy so that Andrews could make phone calls, but added: “This money has not been given to him yet.”
“We just want the embassy to do its job and go see him and make sure he’s safe,” said Andrews’ partner, Alana Kornick.
“The conditions he lives in are heartbreaking every day,” she added.
“Disappointment”
Kornick described how Andrews was held in a “little space” with 32 people in a 12-man cell, with no mattress or fresh air.
And she continued, “I received phone calls from him, he was really frustrated and we talked about suicidal thoughts.”
“It’s the worst thing because there’s nothing we can do,” she added.
Andrews’ mother, Zoe, said the family “has given up hope of doing anything through the embassy”.
“As a family, we are so disappointed and abandoned by our government,” she added.
“We want, whatever the circumstances, to help with the lawsuit, we just want his safety,” she said.
A spokesman for the British Foreign and Development Office disputed what the family said, telling the BBC: “We are providing consular assistance to two British nationals who have been arrested in Morocco and are communicating with the local authorities.”
