Family members back tainted Pak cricketers in crisis hour

Karachi: In their moment of despair, jailed Pakistani cricketers Salman Butt and Mohammad Amir found support in the form of their family members who backed them to the hilt.

Butt was today sentenced to two and a half years in prison by a criminal court in London, Mohammad Asif was handed a one-year term, while the 19-year-old Amir was sentenced to six months for their involvement in spot-fixing, making them first cricketers ever to be imprisoned for corruption, which left their family members shocked. "I will be holding a press conference in the next few days in which I will show how my son was implicated and made a scapegoat in this case," said Butt`s father Zulfiqar. He said that his son was convicted despite lack of evidence in the trial against him. "My son is innocent and we believe in him. It is a sad day for us but I will hold a conference and expose all those involved in this case," he said. Butt`s sister too believed that her brother was innocent. "It`s a shocking decision for the family. He has not done anything wrong. He has been victimised. We believe in Allah (God) and I know a day will come when my brother will prove his innocence. He is not guilty," she said. While television channels flashed images of Amir`s father and brothers weeping and shaking their heads in disbelief, Butt`s father was defiant. PTI