The UAE's demand to extradite a man on the Dubai police's "10 most-wanted list" will next be heard in a British court in September, an official source said.
A first attempt to have Mohammed Lodhi extradited from the UK to face trial for alleged drugs offences failed after a London court ruled that there was insufficient evidence against him, the official told the Gulf News.
The UAE then submitted a second request, and now Lodhi will appear at in court on September 19 and 20 to face a fresh extradition hearing based on further evidence supplied by Dubai authorities, he added.
Lodhi's lawyer, Peter Binning, said the court would decide if there was enough evidence to substantiate the charges against him, which relate to the manufacture of the illegal drug Mandrax.
If the court rules that there is enough evidence for an extradition to take place, its decision will be forwarded to the British home secretary for approval, although it can be challenged in the High Court within 15 days.
The case dates back to June 1997, when officials raided several premises in Dubai and Umm Al Quwain, including those of a company run by Lodhi, where tablets and machinery allegedly used in the manufacture of Mandrax were found, said the paper – Albawaba.com
The 43-year-old Pakistani fled the UAE in July 1997 before settling in Singapore. He was convicted in his absence at the Dubai Court of First Instance in June 1999 of six charges related to the manufacture of Mandrax and sentenced to life imprisonment.
An international arrest warrant was issued through Interpol and Lodhi was arrested at London's Heathrow airport in January last year while trying to enter England with his wife Tabassum, who was seeking treatment for cervical cancer.
© 2001 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
