DEATH SENTENCE LOOMS: Aussie Actor Faces Execution in China After Last-Ditch Appeal Fails
- Former Blue Heelers star Karm Gilespie, 61, convicted of smuggling 7.5kg of methamphetamine in China
- Gilespie arrested at Baiyun Airport in 2013, detained in Guangzhou cell ever since
- Chinese lawyer warns convictions rarely overturned, execution by lethal injection or firing squad imminent if appeal fails
Australian actor Karm Gilespie’s desperate bid to escape death row in China has reached a critical juncture. The 61-year-old former Blue Heelers star faces immediate execution by lethal injection or firing squad if his last-ditch appeal against a drug trafficking conviction fails.
Gilespie’s ordeal began in 2013 when he was arrested at Baiyun Airport in southern China after border force officers discovered 7.5kg of methamphetamine in his luggage. He was sentenced to death in June 2020 under China’s tough anti-drugs policy, but his family and lawyers have maintained his innocence.
The Ballarat-raised actor has been detained in a Guangzhou cell for over eight years, with his family and friends holding on to hope that his appeal would be successful. However, a Chinese lawyer warns that convictions in China are rarely overturned, and the lengthy delay in the appeal process may be due to the Covid pandemic.
“There is usually a death penalty review after the appeal verdict involving the Supreme People’s Court conducting a special review and approval process for cases sentenced to death,” said Jin Ling, a Chinese criminal lawyer. “Judges reviewing the death penalty are very cautious, especially when involving foreign citizens – the result will rarely be different.”
Gilespie, who gave up acting in 2009 to pursue a career in property investment and motivational speaking, ended up in China as part of his foray into motivational speaking. His case has drawn parallels with that of Australian-New Zealand citizen Peter Gardner, who was arrested at the same airport in 2014 with his then-girlfriend, Kalynda Davis, and charged with allegedly trafficking 30kg of methamphetamine.
In a heartbreaking development, Gilespie’s family has been left in the dark about his fate, with the Australian Consulate-General in Guangzhou unable to release any information about his case without approval from China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs has been contacted for comment, but the clock is ticking for Gilespie, who will be executed immediately if his appeal is unsuccessful.