British justice secretary Jack Straw had put an end to the hopes for an early release of 21-year-old British national Michael Shields, convicted by a Bulgarian court of attempted murder of Bulgarian Martin Georgiev, Liverpool Echo (no relation to The Sofia Echo) said on July 7 2008.

Straw had a three hour meeting with Shields' campaigners and, according to Liverpool Echo, he admitted he did not have the legal power to release Shields, who is currently serving his 10-year sentence in the UK.

Straw said his hands were tied by the European convention on the transfer of prisoners, as a result of which Shileds was transferred to a British prison in 2006.

He was found guilty of attacking Bulgarian bartender Martin Georgiev in May 2005. The Briton hit Georgiev with a stone on the head, which permanently impaired Georgiev’s ability to work.

Since then, Shields' family has been campaigning for his early release. Shields has always claimed his innocence, saying that it was another Briton, Graham Sankey, who hit Georgiev.

Sankey reportedly had issued a confession after Shields was convicted, but refused to appear before Bulgarian court, which made no difference to Shields' situation.

The campaigners for his freedom managed to attract the support of Liverpool member of the parliament Louise Ellman, Liverpool member of European Parliament Arlene McCarthy and city Labour leader Joe Anderson.

Letters were sent to Bulgarian President Georgi Purvanov, calling upon him to pardon Shields.

After the meeting with Straw on July 7, however, Anderson told Liverpool Echo that Straw's words were the “biggest blow yet” for Shields' hopes for early release. “When the Bulgarians said it is up to the UK to free Michael we had new hope. But this news has totally deflated that,” he told Liverpool Echo.