One of America's most wanted men was remanded in custody today pending extradition to the United States where he could face trial for the deaths of three students in a hit-and-run incident.
Frederick David Russell (27), who was on the run for four years, appeared briefly at the High Court in Dublin in his attempt to block the order.
He was remanded to Cloverhill Prison and told to return to the court for a hearing in three weeks. No date has been set for the full extradition hearing but lawyers are confident the matter will proceed in the week before Christmas or early in the New Year.
Mr Russell's long-term girlfriend, Hazel McNaboe, with whom he had been sharing a house with in Celbridge, Co Kildare, up until the time of his arrest also appeared in court.
Mr Russell was arrested by gardaí earlier this year while working as a security guard at a clothes shop in Dublin city centre. It is understood the US Marshals' Service had received a tip-off that he was living and working in the Dublin area after his name was put on the 15 most wanted list.
Mr Russell had evaded authorities on both sides of the Atlantic since fleeing from the US after he was charged in connection with a fatal car accident in Washington State on June 4th, 2001.
He first fled to Canada, following a series of death threats. From there he boarded a plane to England, went on the run across central Europe for several months before settling in Ireland in late 2001.
He had been charged in connection with the high speed crash which occurred on the Moscow-Pullman highway and claimed the lives of three students.
Brandon Clements (22) of Wapato; Stacey Morrow (21), of Milton; and Ryan Sorenson (21) of Westwood, all died in the accident. Three other passengers in the same car were seriously injured.