Courts / Dublin / Report

Dutch gang leader Fassih fails in bid to halt murder prosecution

Date
2021-05-27

Stage
Appeal

Primary locality
Dublin

County
Dublin

Summary

The Court of Appeal has dismissed an appeal by Naoufal Fassih, a Dutch gang leader, who sought to halt a murder prosecution in the Netherlands. Mr Justice John Edwards, presiding over the three-judge panel, ruled that the appellant's grounds lacked merit. Fassih, a Dutch citizen of Moroccan origin, was previously surrendered to Dutch authorities under a 2016 European Arrest Warrant (EAW). In the Netherlands, he was convicted of attempted murder, assault, possession of false documents, and money laundering, receiving an 18-year prison sentence. In 2020, Dutch authorities requested permission from the Irish High Court to try Fassih for additional charges of murder and incitement to murder. The High Court granted this permission in July of last year. Fassih's legal team argued that the original EAW was issued by a Dutch public prosecutor, which a 2019 CJEU decision suggested might not qualify as a 'judicial authority,' thereby invalidating the basis for further prosecution. However, Mr Justice Edwards rejected this argument, stating that challenging the 2016 warrant constituted a collateral attack on a prior judicial decision. He affirmed that the High Court judge who ordered the surrender had already determined the prosecutor was a competent judicial authority, a finding that is res judicata and cannot be further challenged. The appeal was dismissed, allowing the Dutch prosecution to proceed.