Danish court nixes extradition of Dane to India

The Eastern High Court upheld a previous ruling opposing the extradition of 49-year-old Niels Holck, saying it is against Danish law because he would risk ‘torture or other inhuman treatment’ in India.

The ruling by an unanimous five-judge panel was a defeat for the Danish Justice Ministry, which last year decided it would meet India’s extradition request. Holck then tested the ruling before Danish courts.

‘I don’t know whether I should be happy, because the prosecution can appeal,’ Holck said after the ruling.

Prosecutor Joergen Jensen said he would discuss the ruling with the Justice Ministry before deciding on whether to appeal to the Supreme Court, Denmark’s top judicial instance.

Holck, who is also known under the cover name Kim Davy, has acknowledged taking part in dropping assault rifles, rocket launchers and missiles from a cargo plane onto a field in eastern India in 1995. Indian police said the cache was meant for an Indian revolutionary group.

A Briton and a five-man Latvian aircrew were arrested by Indian authorities shortly after, but Holck escaped and eventually reached Denmark by way of Nepal.