Garda documents application adjourned in extradition dispute

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

The High Court in Dublin adjourned an Irish man’s application to use Garda documents in English extradition proceedings against his surrender to France. On 22 March 2018, Ms Justice Marie Baker adjourned the application to a date in April for further legal submissions.

The man says he was a Garda informer when he was arrested in France on drug-trafficking offences. He was subsequently given a four-year prison sentence, which he never served. Earlier in 2018, he was arrested and detained in England under a European Arrest Warrant issued by the French authorities in relation to that sentence. He opposes surrender.

He claims he agreed in the late 1990s to inform on suspected drug traffickers and that Gardaí promised to protect his safety, confidentiality and freedom from prosecution. He says Gardaí knew in advance of his 2000 expedition to France, which involved a plan to move drugs from Spain to Ireland, but failed to intervene after his arrest and conviction. The State says it paid him for information but denies agreeing to protect him from prosecution in another jurisdiction.

In 2016, Ms Justice Marie Baker ordered discovery of Garda documents in his pending damages action against the Irish State. The defendants claimed privilege, citing risks to life and operational security. His counsel, Hugh O'Keeffe SC, sought permission for his UK lawyers to use the documents and said surrender would be an abuse of process. Alice Fawsitt SC, for the State, opposed the application, citing a potential absence of control over their use.