Court’s bail refusal ‘was politically motivated’

JASMINE HARTIN is stuck behind bars ‘for political reasons’, a source close to the case claimed last night.

Ms Hartin remains in solitary confinement at the notoriously tough Belize Central Jail after her bail plea was adjourned.

In Belize, a person with no criminal record should automatically receive bail for the charge of manslaughter with negligence. But the Director of Public Prosecutions has deemed Ms Hartin ‘a flight risk’ and has adjourned her bail application until Wednesday.

It has been suggested the decision was designed to counter criticism that the wealthy socialite has received ‘special treatment’ because of billionaire Lord Ashcroft’s extensive business interests in Belize. A source said: ‘The public is baying for blood. There’s a feeling she’s getting away with it.

‘Politicians and police want her to stay in prison to assuage the public. It could be a year before there is a trial. In private, politicians accept this was an accident, but if voters say she needs to be hung, drawn and quartered, it will take a brave politician to say they’re wrong.

‘She is certainly not being given any special treatment in jail – she’s being segregated for her own safety’. The charge carries a maximum sentence of a £7,000 fine and five years in jail, but if a judge agrees the death was accidental, it is unlikely Ms Hartin will spend any further time behind bars.

The source said: ‘It’s a relatively small fine, so why would she go on the run? She being punished for political reasons.’