On 26 October 2021 Mr Justice Swift allowed the appeal of Dennis Barber against his extradition to the Sovereign Base Area of Akrotiri and Dhekelia, a British Overseas Territory (“the SBA”). This was the first extradition request from the SBA, a Territory whose jurisdiction dates back to the independence of Cyprus in 1960. The case had an unusual history. The allegations dated to 1977-1980 when the Appellant was an RAF firefighter on the Base. They were initially investigated in 1997 and the Appellant was told in 2001 via a letter to his solicitor that he would not be prosecuted. The case was revived in 2017 but without reference to the earlier investigation. The judgment makes plain the importance and significance of a previous decision not to prosecute both in terms of passage of time and Article 8 ECHR in the context of the Extradition Act, 2003.
The Appellant was represented by David Josse QC and Ben Keith instructed by Katy Smart and Fiona Haddadeen of Sonn MacMillan Walker Solicitors.
The full judgement can be downloaded by clicking here.
David Josse Q.C. has been Head of Chambers since 2015. He is a barrister specialising in extradition, human rights, international war crimes and serious crime, both nationally and internationally. David is ranked in the Legal 500 as a Tier 1 silk in international crime and extradition at the London Bar. David is ranked in Chambers and Partners as a silk in the field of extradition at the London Bar.
