Seán Binder, who lives in Holloway Road, said he worked amicably with Greek authorities in aid of those who got into trouble as they made the perilous crossing to Europe

A VOLUNTEER says he has been accused of a range of “baseless” crimes after heading to Greece to help search and rescue missions for refugees risking their lives in the sea.

Seán Binder, a trained diver who lives in Holloway Road, is one of 24 defendants currently on trial after volunteering for a humanitarian aid organisation five years ago.

Amnesty International have condemned the case as the “criminalisation of solidarity” and campaigning Islington legal firm Leigh Day & Co, which is representing him, say the charges must be dropped.

For 10 months, Mr Binder said he worked amicably with the Greek authorities on rescue missions in aid of those who got into trouble as they made the perilous crossing to Europe.

But things turned sour in 2018 when he was arrested by Greek police and he read an article in a local paper saying he was a “spy” working with a Syrian accomplice. He said his companion, Sarah Mardini, was also doing humanitarian work.

Mr Binder, 27, had signed up to help the Emergency Response Centre International (ERCI) in the Greek island of Lesvos after completing a masters in defence and security policy.

“I thought: I have these practical skills, I have some policy knowledge. I’ll go and volunteer on the island of Lesvos because it is a primary entry point for people,” he said.

Mr Binder had signed up to help the Emergency Response Centre International (ERCI) in the Greek island of Lesvos

At first he thought his arrest was a joke but Mr Binder was later held in prison for “pre-trial” detention for 100 days, describing the jail as “the worst place I’ve seen in my entire life”.

He was later released but has travelled back to Greece this week for a trial which began on Tuesday. He is currently being tried for less serious “misdemeanour” charges, such as fraud and forgery, which carries a custodial sentence of up to eight years, while the authorities say they are investigating more serious charges like espionage.

Mr Binder said he had made a point of being present in the court, when he could have stayed in north London.

“Obviously it is traumatising to some extent to be back on the island and it’s terrifying to potentially risk imprisonment, but I also want to make it very, very clear to the prosecution that while I’m afraid, I know I’m right,” he told the Tribune.

“If we are found guilty, it suggests that anybody who would hand out bottles of water or would deign to offer someone a bit of help in their time of most need – they can go to prison.

“It is the rule of law itself that is at stake here.”

Wies de Graeve of Amnesty International, who is in Greece to observe the trial, said: “We are very worried about the chilling effects of a trial like this on humanitarian organisations or rescue organisations. We see it as a clear tactic to deter people who are helping asylum seekers, migrants and refugees, but also in the broader context of discouraging people altogether to come and find safety in Europe.”

Meanwhile, Islington North MP Jeremy Corbyn said he had solidarity with Mr Binder who was “doing the right thing to save human life and desperate refugees at sea”.

He added: “He should be applauded. Instead he – and other rescuers – are being criminalised. They have our solidarity and support.”