ROMANIA: UK’s Supreme Court discharges Romania’s extradition request for Gabriel Popoviciu
The UK’s Supreme Court has discharged Romania’s extradition request for businessman Gabriel Popoviciu.
This Supreme Court decision comes after Romania’s appeal against an earlier decision to refuse Mr Popoviciu’s extradition to Romania. It is the final decision on the matter and means that Mr Popoviciu will not be extradited to Romania. The court win for Mr Popoviciu marks the end of a six year litigation. The Supreme Court will deliver its judgment on the appeal in due course.
This final outcome follows the 11 June 2021 decision by London’s High Court to refuse Mr Popoviciu’s extradition to Romania. In that ruling, British judge Lord Justice Holroyde stated: “The evidence shows a real risk that the appellant suffered an extreme example of a lack of judicial impartiality, such that there can be no question as to consequences for the fairness of the trial.” Edward Fitzgerald QC said that Mr Popoviciu would suffer a “flagrant denial of justice” if sent back to serve his sentence in Romania.
The persecution of Mr Popoviciu has highlighted many concerns about Romania’s justice system.