Translator allegedly alters refugeeʼs testimony, could get jail time

Issues

Wikimedia Commons/Délmagyarország/Schmidt Andrea

A translator employed by the prosecution to translate the testimony of an asylum seeker charged for inciting a riot at Horgos-Röszke last year could be sentenced to 1-5 years in prison after allegedly mistranslating and falsifying statements in the defendantʼs testimony, online news portal index.hu reported today.

Issues with the asylum seekerʼs testimony only came to light when the judge asked the defendant if these were in fact his statements and the “mistranslations” were read back to him in Arabic, index.hu said.

Terms such as “with force” were allegedly added to the testimony to describe how he attempted to cross the border last year, words he never used in his original testimony, according to the portal.

The translator could be charged with perjury, which carries a sentence of up to five years, index.hu said.

Until the principal case is closed, however, only the District Court of Szeged has the authority to report the translator to the authorities. The court has not yet decided on how it will proceed, index.hu reported.

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