British couple in Iran urges UK to deport Iranian stalker for possible swap

Craig and Lindsay Foreman, both 53, were arrested in Iran in January 2025 while on a round‑the‑world motorbike tour and later sentenced to 10 years on espionage charges they deny. The couple have appealed to the British government to deport Richard Jan, an Iranian‑born dual national who has been imprisoned in a UK maximum‑security facility for more than two decades.

Jan was convicted in 2004 of arson and a seven‑year stalking campaign, receiving a life sentence with a minimum term of seven and a half years. He renounced his British citizenship in prison and became eligible for deportation in 2010, but the Ministry of Justice blocked his removal, and parole boards in 2021 and 2024 refused release, citing concerns that licence conditions could not be enforced in Iran.

Iranian officials have repeatedly cited Jan’s case in negotiations concerning detained Britons, including Nazanin Zaghari‑Ratcliffe. The Foremans argue that Jan’s release could be the "only avenue" to secure their freedom, quoting Craig Foreman: “If it means that they can get us out by doing a swap, then why not?” Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy has suggested that arrangements could be made, though the Foreign Office maintains there is no exchange deal in place and UK policy normally prohibits prisoner swaps.

The plea highlights ongoing diplomatic tensions between the UK and Iran over the treatment of nationals detained abroad and raises questions about the use of prisoner swaps in foreign policy.