Extradition hearing due to get underway for John Downey

 

An extradition hearing is due to get underway in the High Court this morning for alleged IRA bomber John Downey.
The 66-year-old is wanted in Northern Ireland in connection with the murder of two British soldiers who died in a car bomb explosion in 1972.
John Downey was arrested in Donegal earlier this month following a decision by authorities in Northern Ireland to prosecute him on charges arising from a car bomb attack in Enniskillen, Co. Fermanagh in 1972.
In Feb 2014, he stood trial in the Old Bailey in London for the alleged murder of four British soldiers who died in the Hyde Park bombing.
His trial collapsed when it emerged that he received a letter a few years beforehand under the so-called On the Runs scheme.
The scheme, which was part of the Good Friday Agreement, granted immunity to 187 suspected IRA members who were wanted in the UK for crimes committed during The Troubles.
Mr. Downey, who’s on bail, plans to rely on that letter in his fight against extradition, which is due to get underway later this morning.