Bangkok : A court in Thailand has ordered the extradition of a Briton to Dubai on charges of embezzling $150 million from a Dubai property company.
M.B.S., 43, was arrested in Bangkok in May last year after eight months on the run from charges that he siphoned off the cash from the company. “The court has decided to extradite him to the UAE,” a judge at Bangkok criminal court said.
"Even though Thailand and the UAE do not have an extradition treaty, the UAE has expressed the willingness to do favours if Thailand asks in future," the judge said.
M.B.S. allegedly siphoned off other workers’ salaries into his own bank account while working as a personnel manager at the company, Thai police said in May, citing the warrant from the UAE. Police said M.B.S., who is married to a Thai woman, had travelled extensively through Vietnam, Hong Kong, the Philippines and Thailand after fleeing Dubai in 2008.
The judge said that M.B.S. had 30 days in which to appeal the decision. Thai authorities then had a further 60 days in which to extradite him, after which he must be freed.
The lawyer of the Briton, Prachaya Vijitpokin, said he would challenge the ruling. "I will definitely lodge an appeal within 30 days but will not be seeking bail, as bail in extradition cases is never approved," he told reporters.
The Thai and UAE governments are currently negotiating an extradition treaty and have discussed a draft agreement on the matter after talks in Dubai in January.
