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- Posted: Wed, 21 Jan 2015 09:03:22 +0000
A fugitive foreign doctor accused of child rape in the U.S. has been allowed to stay in Britain - in case the Americans lock him up for too long.
Judges ruled it would be a breach of Tobias Bowen's human rights if they agreed to his extradition.
The 48-year-old fled New York for Africa four years ago while on $10,000 bail charged with two counts of raping a child.
Detectives working with the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force tracked his travels, which included a stay in Holland, and he was taken into custody at Heathrow when he visited Britain in April last year.
Westminster Magistrates' Court yesterday heard that he had since settled in Milton Keynes with his wife and young family – making Britain his 'safe haven'.
Daniel Sternberg, acting on behalf of the American authorities, told the court: 'Bowen is undoubtedly a fugitive from justice from the legal powers of the United States.
'He was granted bail for a huge amount of $10,000 and subsequently left the country in 2010.
'He was given bail and released and his record is not good, he has not attended court and travelled in Liberia and the Netherlands.'
But, in a judgment likely to spark outrage in America, magistrates ruled that Bowen's 'right to liberty and security' under the European Convention on Human Rights was at threat from his extradition.
District judge Margaret Rose rejected claims that putting him on a plane would breach either his right to a fair trial or his freedom of expression.
But she added: 'However, his Article 5 right to liberty and security would be at risk if he were to go back and convicted in New York state and face indefinite imprisonment, therefore he is discharged.
His defence lawyer, Malcolm Hawkes, said the reference to article 5 meant there was a fear his client would be placed in indefinite detention if he went back to the US.
The U.S. is expected to lodge an immediate appeal and Bowen was remanded in custody. If he is bailed at a future date, the surety is expected to be £10,000.
Bail conditions would include no access to his passport, no international travel and a 12 hour electronic curfew plus daily reports to a police station.
Bowen, a doctor who ran a public hospital in his native Liberia, was charged with rape and criminal sex acts in New York in March 2010.
Mr Hawkes said his client was of 'good character' and argued he should be allowed to return to his family.
He had 'lived openly' in Liberia but had now surrendered his Dutch and Liberian passports.
He added: 'The time has come to give my client the benefit of the doubt. It would be regrettable if the appeal against today's decision were to take some time and he were to spend a year in jail.
'His proper place is with his family and the UK is his safe haven.'
There has been controversy over a string of cases in which British citizens were extradited to the U.S..
They included Paul Dunham, 59, and Sandra Dunham, 58, who took a drug overdose the night before they were due to hand themselves in to U.S. marshals.
The couple admitted fraud last year after being eventually put on a plane.
Golf club president Christopher Tappin, 66, also lost his fight against extradition on charge of aiding and abetting the illegal export of defence articles. He later admitted the offence under a so-called plea bargain.
BS
Judges ruled it would be a breach of Tobias Bowen's human rights if they agreed to his extradition.
The 48-year-old fled New York for Africa four years ago while on $10,000 bail charged with two counts of raping a child.
Detectives working with the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force tracked his travels, which included a stay in Holland, and he was taken into custody at Heathrow when he visited Britain in April last year.
Westminster Magistrates' Court yesterday heard that he had since settled in Milton Keynes with his wife and young family – making Britain his 'safe haven'.
Daniel Sternberg, acting on behalf of the American authorities, told the court: 'Bowen is undoubtedly a fugitive from justice from the legal powers of the United States.
'He was granted bail for a huge amount of $10,000 and subsequently left the country in 2010.
'He was given bail and released and his record is not good, he has not attended court and travelled in Liberia and the Netherlands.'
But, in a judgment likely to spark outrage in America, magistrates ruled that Bowen's 'right to liberty and security' under the European Convention on Human Rights was at threat from his extradition.
District judge Margaret Rose rejected claims that putting him on a plane would breach either his right to a fair trial or his freedom of expression.
But she added: 'However, his Article 5 right to liberty and security would be at risk if he were to go back and convicted in New York state and face indefinite imprisonment, therefore he is discharged.
His defence lawyer, Malcolm Hawkes, said the reference to article 5 meant there was a fear his client would be placed in indefinite detention if he went back to the US.
The U.S. is expected to lodge an immediate appeal and Bowen was remanded in custody. If he is bailed at a future date, the surety is expected to be £10,000.
Bail conditions would include no access to his passport, no international travel and a 12 hour electronic curfew plus daily reports to a police station.
Bowen, a doctor who ran a public hospital in his native Liberia, was charged with rape and criminal sex acts in New York in March 2010.
Mr Hawkes said his client was of 'good character' and argued he should be allowed to return to his family.
He had 'lived openly' in Liberia but had now surrendered his Dutch and Liberian passports.
He added: 'The time has come to give my client the benefit of the doubt. It would be regrettable if the appeal against today's decision were to take some time and he were to spend a year in jail.
'His proper place is with his family and the UK is his safe haven.'
There has been controversy over a string of cases in which British citizens were extradited to the U.S..
They included Paul Dunham, 59, and Sandra Dunham, 58, who took a drug overdose the night before they were due to hand themselves in to U.S. marshals.
The couple admitted fraud last year after being eventually put on a plane.
Golf club president Christopher Tappin, 66, also lost his fight against extradition on charge of aiding and abetting the illegal export of defence articles. He later admitted the offence under a so-called plea bargain.
BS
