The family of Annette Mangan has been told that the Cyprus Attorney General could take as long as "15-20 days to consider" their letter of appeal, submitted on August 23rd.
This advice, by one of the family's lawyers, means that even if the appeal is successful and she is released, Mangan would have served as much as six weeks of a four-month sentence, imposed on August 8th, for making a false claim of rape against a fellow Irish tourist.
With the standard reduction of sentence and time off for good behaviour, Mangan could be released after 50 to 60 days, irrespective of an appeal.
"It's the same as if the appeal didn't happen," Ms Avril Mangan, the sister of Annette Mangan, said. And her father, Mr Albert Mangan, observed: "If it's going to take so long, making this appeal for clemency is a complete waste of time and money."
The Mangans had been encouraged because, in a spate of cases last week of foreign tourists seeking to make fraudulent insurance claims, all he offenders were fined and released. "But these cases don't seem to have made a difference," observed Ms Avril Mangan.
The Mangans intend to keep at least one family member in Cyprus to bolster Mangan's spirits until she is released.
