THE HIGH Court yesterday endorsed a European Arrest Warrant for English journalist Ian Bailey, who is being sought by the French authorities in connection with the murder of French film producer Sophie Toscan du Plantier in west Cork 13 years ago.
Lawyers from the Chief State Solicitors Office went before Mr Justice Michael Peart in the High Court yesterday and presented him with the arrest warrant issued last month by French magistrate, judge Patrick Gachon.
Last week, Mr Justice Peart had asked for the original warrant and his endorsing of the document yesterday paves the way for the arrest of Mr Bailey (53), who lives near Schull in west Cork and who is studying for his final law exams next month at UCC.
Officers from the extradition section attached to Garda headquarters in Dublin travelled to west Cork last night.
It is expected that they will execute the warrant early this morning and arrest Mr Bailey and bring him to appear in the High Court in Dublin.
Mr Bailey’s arrest is likely to trigger a protracted legal battle as Mr Bailey’s solicitor, Frank Buttimer, has indicated his client will vigorously contest the validity of the warrant and any and all attempts to extradite him to France.
Mr Buttimer said earlier this month that were his client to lose in the High Court, he would appeal to the Supreme Court as he believed granting a warrant in such circumstances would raise broader constitutional issues.
Relatives and friends of Ms Toscan du Plantier welcomed yesterday’s High Court decision.
Ms Toscan du Plantier’s uncle, Jean Pierre Gazeau, described the news as “fantastic” and congratulated the Irish justice system for its expeditious endorsement of the European arrest warrant.
“This is fantastic and it is so heartening for Sophie’s parents, Georges and Marguerite because they have been waiting for 14 years for something like this,” said Mr Gazeau, who is also president of the Association for the Truth about the Murder of Sophie Toscan du Plantier.
“Of course we know and fully expect Mr Bailey to fight this in the Irish High Court and the Irish Supreme Court if necessary, so we still have many more steps to travel but tonight our hope grows a lot stronger,” he told The Irish Times.
Mr Gazeau commended Judge Gachon on his work to date and he reiterated his challenge to Mr Bailey to come to France to face the magistrate if, as he had continually claimed, he was innocent of any involvement in his niece’s death.
Lawyer Alain Spilliaert, who advises the family and the campaign group, described yesterday’s decision as “a historic moment in the long and very determined struggle by the family”.