Krejcir extradition process underway after 10-year wait

FOR more than 10 years the Czech Republic has been trying to extradite Radovan Krejcir.

This week, extradition proceedings finally began at the Kempton Park Magistrate’s Court, with Krejcir admitting that, depending on the outcome, he would enter a plea bargain with the state on two of his criminal cases.

Krejcir is currently at the centre of a series of criminal charges – from the alleged murder of suspected Bedfordview drug kingpin, Sam Issa, to the alleged conspiracy to kill forensic consultant Paul O’Sullivan and high-ranking police officer Colonel Nkosana Ximba. He has also been accused of several attempts to escape from prison, with one of the incidents finally heading to trial in January.

Despite the mass of criminal cases against him, thus far, he has only been convicted of drug dealing and attempted murder, for which he was sentenced to an effective 34 years behind bars.

This week, his home country’s extradition proceedings began in Kempton Park, with specialist National Prosecuting Authority prosecutor, advocate JJ du Toit, presenting a timeline to the court of how the process began.

Du Toit presented the Czech Republic’s application, which sought to extradite Krejcir to face four criminal cases – criminal conspiracy to commit fraud and murder, evasion of taxes, credit fraud and “committing an offence of deprivation of personal freedom ... and offence of blackmail”. In all of the cases, Krejcir was found guilty in his absence.

The case has been postponed until January.