The High Court ruled today that the “Enron Three”, David Bermingham, Giles Darby and Gary Mulgrew, can be extradited to the United States to face fraud charges. The judgment marks the first test case in the UK under the Extradition Act 2003. The men lost their Judicial Review of the Serious Fraud Office decision not to investigate them together with their appeal against extradition.

Director of Liberty, Shami Chakrabarti, said:

"The Extradition Act 2003 is a breathtaking example of a sovereign government trading away the rights and freedoms of its citizens as a political gesture for a foreign power. Human beings are to be sent across the world like sacks of carrots, away from family and friends, to be detained for long periods pending trial. There is no need to show even a prima facie case to a UK court. If we are wrong that this is a violation of fundamental rights, why will the US Government not allow similar traffic for its own citizens in the other direction?"

"In the present case, the defendants and alleged victims are British. The alleged criminality took place in this country. If there is a case to answer and this is about justice and not politics, let these men stand trial in a British court."

Liberty Press Office on 0207 378 3656 or 07973 831 128

NOTES TO EDITORS

1. Liberty intervened in the case Government of the United States of America v Bermingham, Mulgrew and Darby, to argue that removal to the United States would engage Article 8 of the Human Rights Act which protects the right to respect for a private and family life. Liberty argued that the interference with family life caused by removal to the United States must be disproportionate if shown to be unnecessary through the ability to dispose of the case to the United Kingdom.