Mother must face prosecution in Croatia, court rules

THE High Court has ordered that a mother be surrendered to Croatia to face prosecution for moving her child to Ireland, despite evidence of ‘atrocious acts of abuse’ by the father towards his child.

Judge Kerida Naidoo said the woman had moved here in 2016, when her child was eight. He is now 15 years old.

‘The [mother] avers that having now lived in Ireland for a number of years her son is very happy and is doing well in school,’ he said.

‘She says she is working and has secured a mortgage. She says that in the circumstances she believes her surrender to Croatia would place the child’s life and her life at risk and would expose them to relive the violence that she says she was subjected to by [her ex-husband].’

However, in a judgment published yesterday, Judge Naidoo said the woman had disregarded a court order which was in place in Croatia, allowing the father supervised access to his child.

Permitting the surrender of the woman, he ruled that there was no evidence to indicate that her rights, including her safety, would not be protected by the Croatian authorities, or that she would not receive a fair trial there.

The woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, had told the High Court in Dublin she was in a relationship with her former husband (DB) since 2007.

‘She says she and her child were physically and emotionally assaulted, abused and deprived of basic needs by the child’s father, who she says has a criminal record and criminal associates,’ the judge noted.

‘She says that on September 4, 2016, when the child was returned to her from DB, the child was exhausted and traumatised, that she took him to hospital where he was reviewed, and a psychiatric report was prepared.

‘Thereafter the respondent resigned her job and, acting on what she says was professional advice, moved to Ireland in the interests of herself and her child.’

The woman claimed that her ex-husband did not leave them alone, and instituted child abduction proceedings, which were withdrawn in 2017.

‘Psychiatric reports from Croatia and the report of a chartered psychologist in this jurisdiction are said to attest to “the atrocious acts of abuse” perpetrated by DB,’ the judge said. Despite those reports, the woman was arrested in March 2023, on foot of a Schengen Information System II alert, having been made the subject of a European Arrest Warrant.

Judge Naidoo noted that the ongoing absence of the child constituted a breach of the Croatian court order.

Ireland would be entitled to seek extradition of a suspect in precisely the same circumstances, he said.

Documents shown to the court included her divorce papers, showing that her son was to be placed in her care and custody.

Judge Naidoo said it was natural to feel sympathy for the mother. However, he said there were no legal grounds on which he could refuse the application from Croatia for her surrender.