THE COURT of Appeal has ruled that Delroy Boyd, 46, should not be extradited to the United States to face drug charges.
Lord Anthony Gifford, Q.C., and attorney-at-law Hugh Thompson had argued that the evidence presented on behalf of the United States Government did not show that Boyd's alleged drug activities had any connection with the U.S.
The lawyers submitted that -- at the most -- the evidence revealed transactions taking place between Jamaica and the Bahamas, and no where near the shores of the continental US. They also submitted that for an extradition to the US to be lawful, Boyd's alleged activities had to take place in the US, or be aimed at that country.
COURT APPEAL
The Court of Appeal, comprising the President, Mr. Justice Ian Forte, Mr. Justice Seymour Panton and Mr. Justice Howard Cooke, (acting), last Friday upheld the submissions. The court has promised to put its reasons in writing at a later date.
Boyd, a resident of Montego Bay, St. James, who also goes by the name "Plummer", was arrested in August last year after the US Government had made a request to the Jamaican Government for his extradition. He was indicted in the United States District Court in Southern Florida on two counts of conspiracy to possess cocaine and marijuana and conspiracy to import cocaine and marijuana. The offences were alleged to have been committed between November 1997 and December 2000.
Following an extradition hearing in November last year, it was ordered that he should be extradited to the USA. He was remanded in custody pending his extradition. Boyd had denied being involved in drug trafficking.
Boyd applied to the Supreme Court for a writ to be released from prison but his application was refused. He took the case to the Court of Appeal which ordered his immediate release.
