Courts / Tyrone / Report

More information sought in case of man wanted in NI for murder

Date
2014-11-17

Stage
Charge Or Pretrial

Primary locality
Dungannon

County
Tyrone

Summary

A High Court judge in Dublin is awaiting further information before deciding whether to extradite Francis Lanigan, 49, who is wanted in Northern Ireland for the 1998 murder of John Knocker. Lanigan, who lives in Mulhuddart, claims that if he is handed over to UK authorities he would face a "significant risk to his life" from loyalist and republican paramilitaries. He was arrested in January 2013 on an extradition warrant and has been remanded in custody until December 8, with a bail application possible in the meantime. Lanigan's counsel, Dr Michael Forde, argues that a letter from the Northern Ireland Prison Service detailing his proposed detention should be inadmissible because Lanigan had no chance to cross‑examine its author. The judge has deferred judgment until the issuing state provides additional information, which is expected to take two to three weeks.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: More information sought in case of man wanted in NI for murder. Charges or matters: murder. Procedural stage: charge_or_pretrial

When:

January 2013 Incident
May 31, 1998 Incident
December 8 Adjournment
2014-11-17 Publication

Why: Dr Forde also argued that a letter from the Northern Ireland Prison Service outlining plans for Mr Lanigan's detention should be ruled as inadmissible because he did not have had the opportunity to cross-examine the author of the letter. CNI source report