Aussie citizen Dan Duggan, ex pilot, held without conviction in max security NSW prison. Dad of 6 denies all charges. PLEASE FOLLOW THIS ACCOUNT
#FreeDanDuggan
Day 440: More to come on this next week but it looks like the NSW Department of Corrections has cruelly and bizarrely denied
#FreeDanDuggan
's request for home detention ... because he "hasn't been charged or convicted". Wait what??? We believe these are the exact reasons given by
Today marks 10 months since Aussie citizen and father of six
#FreeDanDuggan
was kidnapped off the streets of Orange after taking the kids to school. He has been in max security, solitary confinement ever since on the say so of the US, with no Australian charges and no history of
Day 303 - “The United States is applying extra-territorial reach by seeking to charge a non-US citizen with crimes not committed in the US," former Federal Attorney General Michael Duffy has said. He, along with eight other former AGs from around Australia, has signed off on an
Day 438. The repressive NSW government has once again stripped
#FreeDanDuggan
of his single hour of outside, to exercise. For the past 7 days, Dan has been locked in his 2X4 solitary cell in Lithgow prison. It’s back to the dire, inhumane conditions that breach Australia’s
.
@MarkDreyfusKCMP
how many more times do the Duggan kids need to suffer the horror and indignity of visiting their Aussie dad at
#Gitmo
in Lithgow? This morning was the third time they've been face to face with frightening murderers and rapists in order to see their dad
A year and 3 days: Yesterday Prime Minister
@AlboMP
told reporters he can't intervene in
#FreeDanDuggan
's case because "there is a separation of the legal system from the political system". Meanwhile,
#FreeDanDuggan
's wife Saffrine - a forced single mother of 6 - demonstrated
Day 442. We can now reveal the horrific twist, worthy of Franz Kafka, behind the NSW Corrrection Commissioner has turned down
#FreeDanDuggan
’s bid to be moved from maximum security, solitary confinement to home detention.
"Given you have not been sentenced or charged with an
Chained, and ankles and hands shackled, NSW
#politicalprisoner
#FreeDanDuggan
went to the doctor in Lithgow yesterday, after waiting three months for an
#ultrasound
. The Aussie citizen and father of six was first
#strip
-searched and then accompanied by three guards during the
307: When 6-yr-old Ginger Duggan won player of the week at soccer at the weekend, all she wanted to do was tell her dad,
#FreeDanDuggan
. Instead she had to pose for this photo which will now be photocopied and mailed to
#Gitmo
at Lithgow. Once there it will be opened, checked,
One year, 29 days. Shocking media reports this morning that the US is trying to take Saffrine Duggan's only asset – an unfinished house on the south coast of NSW that she’s been trying to sell. Faceless bureaucrats in Canberra have applied to enforce a restraining order approved
Here’s Saffrine Duggan last Sunday outside
#Lithgow
prison. Her husband
#FreeDanDuggan
is locked up here in max security because Australian authorities don’t want him to tell his story. Even the guards say he shouldn’t be here.
@ChrisMinnsMP
pls get Dan to home detention.
While
@AlboMP
was doing another selfie with
@CarolineKennedy
's dog Chester this week,
#FreeDanDuggan
's wife Saffrine again faced the armed guards and sniffer dogs at Lithgow max security prison courtesy of the US, despite no Australian charges or history of violence. Where is
Day 226 - It's Sunday and Saffrine takes her weekly 115km drive to visit NSW
#PoliticalPrisoner
#FreeDanDuggan
at Lithgow. In another draconian measure designed to crush this Aussie family, her visits are conducted in a tiny cage with guards, and Saffrine is subjected to 40
Day 453. In what world can a man with no charges against him, no criminal history and a pile of untested allegations from a foreign power be locked up in solitary for 15 months! In today’s Australia.
#freedanduggan
Is a political prisoner. Please protest this disgrace to your
Day 454. School holiday’s are tough enough without your dad, but it’s even tougher having to visit him in max security prison as the Duggan kid did today.
#FreeDanDuggan
has once more had his one hour outside in the exercise yard taken away. Prison authorities say they are
Day 470. Imagine being able to see your husband or wife for only one hour a week, after a series of prison searches and sniffer dogs. If you take the kids they are subjected to this as well. The visit is in a glass room with armed officers roaming around and convicted murderers
One year and 26 days. Welcome to the military state of Australia where whistleblowers are guilty and the perpetrators of the crimes they reveal, go free. It was a blackest of days for transparency, the rule of law and justice in Australia yesterday when David McBride was “The
Sadly
#FreeDanDuggan
found no joy in court yesterday and now faces another 6 months in solitary confinement. His unjust extradition pushes on at the behest of the US despite clear issues and
#HumanRights
abuses. Dan's extradition will be heard on 24 May 2024 - 19 months after
The Australian this morning reports comments from
#freeDanDuggan
's barrister Bernard Collaery about the US claims of "money laundering" which involved Dan being paid into his CBA bank account and paying tax! “There is not a skerrick of evidence suggesting any concealed
Day 340: Yet another two days of torture being "locked in" his 2x4m cell at
#GITMO
in Lithgow because of "staff shortages" during the school holidays. To rub salt in this festering wound, the prison psychologist yesterday told father of six and Aussie citizen
#FreeDanDuggan
he
Australia Day is a good day to consider what it means to be an Australian citizen. How is it that one of our own – father of six Aussie kids,
#FreeDanDuggan
– is left to rot in solitary confinement on our own soil for 15 months with no local charges at the behest of a foreign
Aussie citizen and father of six
#FreeDanDuggan
has been stripped of any "privileges" and unexpectedly moved to Macquarie Maximum Security in Western NSW - further away from his family, legal team and the media. Access to a word processor to prepare his case for the
Day 294 - Australian airline Rex has resumed training Chinese pilots at its Ballarat training facility. It joins at least half a dozen other Australian flying schools now training Chinese pilots post-COVID. These are the same commercial pilots that
#FreeDanDuggan
was training in
Legendary barrister and human rights advocate Geoffrey Robertson has spoken out in favour of
#FreeDanDuggan
.
In the Central Western Daily today, Robertson said said Dan’s incarceration raises human rights concerns.
“It's a disgrace that a man like this with a presumption of
Day 447.
#FreeDanDuggan
’s family have expressed extreme disappointment and distress after the NSW Department of Corrections Kafkaesque explanation that it was powerless to grant their husband and father home detention. In an official letter the Department said it had no
Reports that
#FreeDanDuggan
's wife Saffrine has written to NSW Premier
@ChrisMinnsMP
demanding Dan be given immediate access to a computer and his legal team so he can prepare his case for the Attorney-General. As an unconvicted Australian citizen, Dan should have the right "to
Day 292 -
#FreeDanDuggan
's lawyer Bernard Collaery says: "In Australia we have been training lots of young Chinese pilots down at Moorabbin, and other places to fly. We've been teaching spin and stall the tactics. We've been teaching them how to land and take off on short
Day 441: Australian citizen and father of six Aussie kids,
#FreeDanDuggan
has less than 5 months before facing extradition to the US and a possible 65 years in Federal prison for unproven allegations that aren't even a crime here. He has already spent more than 14 months in
Day 414. It was a very tough week for the Duggan's - and Australian sovereignty after the NSW supreme court on Wednesday dismissed a bid by
#Freedanduggan
's lawyers to prevent the Australian federal police from seizing a property owned by his wife, Saffrine.
She had put the
The Duggan family spent yet another Sunday driving hundreds of kilometres just to see
#FreeDanDuggan
. The kids still don't understand why our government has locked their dad in max security for 20 months without local charges or criminal history, or why they have to endure armed
Day 304 - When
#FreeDanDuggan
appeared in court on July 25, Magistrate Reiss asked "who is appearing for the US"? Stephen Lloyd, SC - highly pid stalwart of the Sydney bar - stood up and presented himself. Sitting beside him was a well paid junior barrister and a handsomely
After 19 and half months, unconvicted Aussie father of six
#FreeDanDuggan
finally has access to a word processor and an exercise yard. Why did it take so long in a "free" country like Australia? Thanks to all our supporters who put pressure on the Government to make these tiny
400 days. Today Saffrine and some of the kids will go and see
#FreeDanDuggan
on this shameful anniversary, locked up in max security solitary. He has no charges in Australia, just allegations from the US that he comprehensively rejects - and some which are laughable. Now the US
The story of NSW
#PoliticalPrisoner
#FreeDanDuggan
can now be found on our new website. The Dad of 6 was arrested in an Orange carpark after dropping the kids at school on 21 October 2022. He remains in max security isolation with no Aust charges or convictions anywhere in the
A poem for Dan, our Dad
It’s father’s day but dad’s not here
We miss him very much
They took him while we were at school
Now it’s hard to stay in touch
Today we’ll drive a long long way
To visit him in Lithgow
Where they’ve locked him in a concrete box
It’s like Australia’s
Day 280: The Duggan family is back in Orange, trying to come to terms with
#FreeDanDuggan
spending at least another 120 days in solitary with no Aust charges or history of violence. The extradition process is abomination that removes the rights of our citizens, and tortures their
Day 312 - Yesterday, the Australian government inflicted the latest round of abuse and torture on
#FreeDanDuggan
's kids. They were forced to dirve 1.5 hours in the freezing early morning to visit Dan in Lithgow prison. After multiple searches - including sniffer dogs - and up
Day 514. Today Saffrine finally gets to celebrate her birthday with her husband Dan: in a tiny see through visiting cell in Lithgow prison for just one hour.
#FreeDanDuggan
has no Australian charges or criminal history. Yet the Australian government chooses to lock him up in
While his mum Saffrine was in one of her countless weekly meetings on how to
#FreeDanDuggan
some of the kids got to work. Here’s Jack with his latest contribution to free his dad from his prison hell, all thanks to the US government.
@MarkDreyfusKCMP
can help, will he?
Day 422: For 10-year-old Jack, his dad
#FreeDanDuggan
is his hero and best friend. Yesterday, Jack had to brave sniffer dogs and armed guards to visit him his dad in max security prison. Jack desperately wants his dad home for Christmas. His mum, Saffrine, says the family's
Day 480. Ginger Duggan turns 7 today, another birthday without her dad
#FreeDanDuggan
. On the same day, marks 16 months locked in solitary confinement with no local charges and Julian Assange makes a last pitch legal effort to avoid extradition to the US.
It is a dark and
When your dad
#freedanduggan
is unfairly locked up in prison it’s moments like breaking your arm playing around when you really miss him. Ginger Duggan doesn’t have her dad to hug her tonight as she nurses her injury. She still doesn’t really understand why.
Day 334: Today is Hazel Duggan's 8th birthday ... and it also marks 11 months that her dad
#freedanduggan
has been held in arbitrary detention, maximum security solitary confinement with no local charges or criminal history. On this special day, all Hazel has from dad is the card
An indigenous court has demanded the release of
#FreeDanDuggan
after 19 months and 15 days in solitary confinement with no local charges or convictions. They want Dan immediately returned to his wife and six kids on bail. The order from 11 Elder Judges of the Superior Court of
Humiliated with hands & feet shackled, NSW
#politicalprisoner
#FreeDanDuggan
was marched out of his home town of Orange in Oct last year. For reasons unexplained, his first 2 nights of incarceration were spent in a dungeon-like “dry cell” at Bathurst, with no flushable toilets
The Duggan family has been devastated after a NSW Supreme Court judge today rejected a request to throw out a move by Australian and US government bureaucrats to wage legal warfare against an innocent Australian family, by stripping them of their assets.
Lawyers for Daniel Duggan
Day 422.
#FreeDanDuggan
has asked the acting NSW Corrections Commissioner to be released from home detention saying he is not a flight risk. He said that being incarcerated in max security solitary confinement for 14 months if he is being punished as if I was convicted of some
CRUEL STATE CUTS PHONE ACCESS TO DAN’S KIDS: When Dan was suddenly moved from Lithgow to Wellington prisons’ last week, it was not at the family’s request. In the process he has been denied access to communication devices and to make the phone calls that have held the last bits
6 KIDS LEFT FATHERLESS BY THE STATE: In one week
#FreeDanDuggan
faces extradition to the US. He will be taken away from his six kids, possibly forever as he faces 65 years in prison on trumped up charges. The Duggan kids have had no dad since Dan was kidnapped by the Australian
Day 355 -
#FreeDanDuggan
’s wife has congratulated Australian journalist Cheng Lei - who has been detained and gaoled in China for more than three years - and her family on her release. She has also called for the release of her husband who remains a political prisoner in his
One year and 11 days. The Australian legal system is being weaponised against
#Freedanduggan
at the behest of a foreign government, the US. This month Dan's lawyers escalate their battle to extract "classified” documents from various government departments. Dan cannot get a fair
Day 426. This Christmas give some thought to six traumatised Australian children who are being tortured by the Australian and NSW governments via the inhumane, unjust and illegal - under UN treaties - incarceration of their dad
#FreeDanDuggan
. All at the behest of the US
DUGGANS DRAW HOPE FROM ASSANGE:
#FreeDanDuggan
’s wife Saffrine was thrilled to be able to be in Canberra when Julian Assange returned home. She has drawn hope from his freedom as she battles the US government - funded by the Australian taxpayer- in a bid to halt the extradition
Day 339: Is Michael Pezzullo’s decision to stand down pending an urgent investigation the beginning of a clean out in Australia's home affairs and security agencies? Could this bring a breath of fresh air into the public service advising our government, and the previous
Day 352 - "It was the last day day of school holidays the kids really want to see their Dad before they start school again,
#FreeDanDuggan
's wife Saffrine said yesterday. So they took the long drive to Lithgow "Correctional Centre", the maximum security only facility where
Watch 7.30 tonight on ABC TV for more news on Aussie dad
#FreeDanDuggan
who has been locked up in solitary confinement at Lithgow for more than 9 months with no Australian charges. Tonight's story follows the original 7.30 story that aired in May. If you haven't seen the first
At the weekend, Aussie father of six
#FreeDanDuggan
and his wife Saffrine quietly celebrated their love and wedding anniversary behind concrete and razor wire at Macquarie Maximum Security Correctional Facility. They vowed to continue to fight for justice and put an end the
Day 298: Monday morning and Australia's new, unelected head of state
@CarolineKennedy
is on the front page of the papers again, this time directing Canberra to lobby the DOJ for a plea deal for
#FreeAssangeNOW
. Meanwhile,
#FreeDanDuggan
's family face another week struggling to
It’s school holidays and Jack Duggan misses his dad
#FreeDanDuggan
who is locked up by the Australian government on the say-so of the US. Jack - and his five other siblings - miss their dad so much they are lighting candles for him, to help guide him home.
Our weak
Day 545. The United States government has argued Duggan didn't lose his U.S. citizenship until 2016. But in court last Thursday Dan's barrister Bernard Collaery revealed ge that renounced his U.S. citizenship in January 2012, when he became an Australian citixen. So Dan was not a
Sunday morning and new
#KingCharlesIII
reigns. 199 days since NSW
#politicalprisoner
#FreeDanDuggan
was kidnapped off the streets of Orange and thrown in maximum security solitary confinement at the behest of the US. It was more than 60 days before the father of six was even told
Day 247: This morning 4 of
#FreeDanDuggan
's kids are visiting him at
#Gitmo
in Lithgow. Following their sister Molly last week, it is their first visit since Dan was locked up in max security solitary confinement more than 8 mths ago with no Aust charges & no history of violence.
#FreeDanDuggan
faces another 122 days in solitary max security after a Sydney court today failed to defend Australian sovereignty in favour of the US Government. Helped by officers from the Attorney General’s .
@markdreyfusmp
department, the US will now try to extradite this
Day 341: Supporters from the Duggan's home town of Millthorpe and all over Australia are showing their support for the immediate release of
#FreeDanDuggan
. They want
@MarkDreyfus
to demonstrate Australian sovereignty and set this Aussie citizen and father of six free. Please help
LEGAL AID DENIED: First the Australian Federal Police helped the US seize the Duggan family’s only asset. Then
#FreeDanDuggan
’s application for legal aid was sat on for months. Last week, only two weeks before his court hearing, it was refused. This, after Dan’s presumption of
One year, 30 days. Once again Australian taxpayers are footing the bill for the US government as it it invades our legal system in pursuit of
#FreeDanDuggan
. Yesterday it brought in highly paid barrister Greg O’Mahoney, as it attempted to go after the assets of Dan’s wife
Just how broken is Australia's prison system? The
#UN
seems to know and our politicians are in denial.
#FreeDanDuggan
has been in max security isolation for more than 8 months. Yet NSW Corrections deny this is possible, they say it's illegal, yet they continue to do it. Now we
Dad of 6,
#NSW
#politicalprisoner
#FreeDanDuggan
, 179 in max security isolation today. Like a horror story from a distant authoritarian regime, Dan's incarceration began in Bathurst with no detailed explanation at all. Despite the indictment being cobbled together by the US in
This is Nick and Emma, they want
#Freedanduggan
released from Lithgow
#gitmo
. They think that
@MarkDreyfusKCMP
should halt the extradition to the US now. Australian sovereignty is at risk. Please send us you pics and posters to increase the pressure on Canberra
Day 464: It's hot. Aussie dad
#FreeDanDuggan
is sweltering in his 2m x 4m concrete box in solitary confinement at
#Gitmo
in Lithgow. No sleep for several days, with extreme heat and constant worry about Saff and the kids. All this torture with no Australian charges or
Day 321 -
#FreeDanDuggan
’s wife Saffrine visited Canberra this week where she met with a range of Federal politicians, seeking support for her battle to stop the inhumane, unfair and costly extradition of her husband - at the say so of the US - to the America. Green’s Senator
Day 566: An Australian citizen and father of six,
#FreeDanDuggan
has already survived 18 months of indignity in solitary confinement awaiting US extradition with no local charges or criminal history. During this time he has:
1. lost his mother,
2. his family’s assets have been
Today marks 12 months since Australia citizen and father of six
#FreeDanDuggan
was thrown into solitary confinement. No local charges and no criminal history - based on 12 year old, unproven allegations from a foreign power. Dan's case is an appalling abuse of
#HumanRights
Day 465: While Canberra rightly rushes to find a diplomatic solution for Yang Hengjun's suspended death sentence in China, what are they doing to stop the US persecuting two Australian citizens rotting in solitary confinement in Australia and the UK awaiting extradition?
Day 295 -
@AlboMP
has accepted an invitation to the White House from US President
@JoeBiden
in October.
Albanese said he was accepting the invitation “on behalf of all Australians" adding that "our alliance with the United States has long been at the heart of our foreign policy.”
While most Australians enjoyed a day off with their families today, father of 6 and Aussie citizen
#FreeDanDuggan
remained incarcerated in max security isolation. 172 days today! NSW
#PoliticalPrisoner
locked up alone, despite an Inquiry now being held into the legality of ASIO’s
A petition signed by almost 25,000 Australians has been tabled in parliament asking
@MarkDreyfusKCMP
to immediately release Australian citizen and father of six
#FreeDanDuggan
.
Since the petition was delivered to
@DavidShoebridge
by Dan's wife Saffrine, another 1,500 people
Does the indictment against
#freeDanDuggan
pass the essential dual-criminality test, where an extradition requires the alleged offences offshore to also be a crime in Australia?
The Australian doesn't think so.
"While Section 83.3 of Australia’s Criminal Code goes close...it is
Day 510. Today is Saffrine Duggan’s birthday. She is one of the bravest and most committed people you could ever meet.
At sunrise, Saffrine put on a brave face to wake the children, while aching for her missing best friend and husband,
#FreeDanDuggan
.
"I am angry and sad that
Day 428: Christmas Eve: The US upped the ante recently in its inhumane and unjust pursuit of
#FreeDanDuggan
when it issued a restraining order to prevent the sale of a southern NSW property, which has a part-built family home upon it. His wife owns the property and had been
One year and 5 days. US President Joe Biden is “confident that we’re going to be able to get the money for
#Aukus
because it’s overwhelmingly in our interest…So the question is not if, but when,” he said during a joint press conference with
@AlboMP
in the White House rose garden
Day 477. It’s another tough day for the Duggans with Saffrine having her one hour with
#freedanduggan
in Lithgow prison for the week. On Friday, they found out Dan’s court date for tomorrow was cancelled at the last minute, throwing more uncertainty into their lives and adding
It's been 563 days since Aussie citizen and father of six
#FreeDanDuggan
was kidnapped from the Woolworths carpark in Orange after dropping the kids at school with a cake for their fete. He's been locked in solitary confinement ever since with no local charges.
With no
Day 570: Just three weeks to go today until
#FreeDanDuggan
faces extradition to the US for doing his job - which is not a crime in Australia. An Aussie citizen and father of six, Dan made his home here 22 years ago. He and his family have been abandoned by our Government who
Today
#freeDanDuggan
’s twin sons, Rory and Finn, turn 18 without their dad. Another significant family milestone tragically missed.
It’s a big year for the boys to be without their male role model. They are both studying for the HSC and coming of age.
From prison, Dan wished
Day 542. It is now official: the US government has inserted itself completely into the Australian justice system. In the Sydney Local court yesterday, the US got everything it wanted.
#FreeDanDuggan
will not be afforded the decency of waiting for his legal aid application to be
Conditions at Australia's max security prison are so appalling and frightening that NSW
#politicalprisoner
#FreeDanDuggan
's wife, Saffrine, won't let his six kids visit. They're already in counselling and she worries the experience will give them nightmares, and create resentment
Media reports this morning that a 26,604-signature petition calling for the immediate release of Australian citizen,
#FreeDanDuggan
, has been tabled in Parliament. “This petition is to urge the Australian Attorney-General,
@MarkDreyfusKCMP
to immediately release Dan given the
A year and one day: Media report this morning that
#FreeDanDuggan
's wife Saffrine has called on the government to set her husband free ahead of a court hearing on Monday and a year in solitary. “We feel that it’s been an act of violence and cruelty on our family to take away a
"Our government should show some guts. Our government should make it clear that being an Australian citizen matters, and that when another country comes for you, they'll protect you as best they can ... but we've seen none of that," Senator
@DavidShoebridge
said.
#FreeDanDuggan
Day 356 - "Law enforcement and intelligence are dragging their feet on producing the requested documents that have the potential to prove a conspiracy against
#FreeDanDuggan
, and the agencies state they won’t be able to produce them until the 17 November: just six days before
Is
#FreeDanDuggan
irreparably damaged from his 19.5 months in solitary confinement? Will his young children ever recover from their visits to his tiny cell, sniffer dogs and armed guards. Now in a 2x2m dormitory pod in a room with 26 convicted inmates, Dan is still an Australian
AUSTRALIAN JUSTICE IN PERIL: Moved prisons last week,
#Freedanduggan
is now more than four hours drive from his lawyers. A 10 hour round trip, minimum. The poor prison phone system has denied him a proper legal conference. He has had his already limited access to a computer taken
Day 243: On the same week that
@MarkDreyfusKCMP
celebrated "Access to Information Day",
#FreeDanDuggan
's lawyers were again refused access to documents in court that would explain who gave the order to lock up this Aussie citizen and father of six in the hardest possible
#FreeDanDuggan
remains in solitary confinement tonight after his team chose to not contest the case in the local court, as the final decision lies with the Attorney General. Outside the court, Saffrine explained: “This was no place to battle. There was no opening in the local
7-yr-old Hazel Duggan writes messages on the back patio, hoping her Dad
#FreeDanDuggan
will come home soon. The most outgoing of the 6 Duggan kids, Hazel tries to keep a brave face but often cries herself to sleep, wondering what happened to Dad. He has been a max security
Thank you! We now have more than 5000 followers for
#FreeDanDuggan
. Please listen to ABC’s Background Briefing to hear Dan's account of his case - raising critical new questions about how it has been handled, and the basis of the accusations against him. The husband and
Day 469. People on remand in NSW are facing an average of 60 days in prison. The criminal law for NSW clearly states incarceration is the last resort, not the first. Consider the horrific torture of
#FreeDanDuggan
: almost 500 days in max security gaol despite no charges in
#FreeDanDuggan
in max security isolation for 174 days today, no Australia charges or convictions anywhere in the world, and now the subject of an Inquiry into ASIO's conduct. Dan’s case is a test of Australian sovereignty. It is being fought by a struggling farming family in
Day 300 - On the 300th day since
#FreeDanDuggan
was snatched by
@AusFedPolice
in a country NSW supermarket car park, it's worth pondering who is behind the decision to make him a political prisoner in his own country. With no history of violence and no changes in Australia, the