Miss Soich visits Sinclair in prison

Press, 9 December 1982, Page 2

Miss Soich visits Sinclair in prison

NZPA • London The New Zealand drugs syndicate boss, Alexander Sinclair, has been visited in the top security Parkhurst Prison on the Isle of Wight by his girlfriend, Karen Soich, of Auckland. •Miss Soich, who stood trial with Sinclair last year but was acquitted on drug conspiracy has visited Parkhurst several times since arriving in Britain about a week ago, sources told NZPA yesterday. “They have quite good visits in terms of the length of time they have been given to ■ see each other,” the sources said. Sinclair, formerly Terence Clark, was recently refused leave to appeal against, his;

life sentence for the murder of his former partner, Christopher Martin Johnstone. But he has been told by the Home Office that he can marry Miss Soich when it is safe for him to go outside prison to a registry office. His high security-risk rating, however, makes the marriage unlikely for some time. Miss Soich, who returned to New Zealand after the trial, is expected to stay with friends in Britain for a few months. British prison statutes provide that family and close friends can visit prisoners if the inmate agrees. However, the number and length of visits are at the discretion of the.; prison governor.