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A deaf father who says he “can only read Scouse’s lips” has lost the battle to stand trial in the UK for allegedly blowing up ATMs.
Harry Meadows has spent the past two years contesting an extradition order that ruled that he was leaving the UK for prosecution.
But the 39-year-old claimed that he would not be able to follow procedures in Spanish, could not read or write correctly, or use sign language, with his only way of understanding: “reading the lips of those with a Liverpool accent.”
On Thursday, Meadows lost his last appeal in London High Court and will now be extradited to Spain.
His lawyers drew attention to his troubled mental health and self-harm warnings if the trip from England to Spain continued.
Now Sir Duncan Ousley has sealed the extradition.
(Image: Liverpool ECHO)
Whiston’s Meadows, who denies the allegations against him, is suspected of being part of the Costa del Sol crime spree during which a gang used handmade explosives to blow up ATMs from Malaga to Marbella, nearly robbing £ 300,000.
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Meadows, whose 17-year-old son James was shot and killed in Huyton, was arrested and questioned in Spain and spent three months in custody, where he swam and played soccer, but was unable to communicate with others.
The High Court heard how he was reprimanded for extradition crimes and told police that he had “never been to Spain.”
Benjamin Seifert, representing Meadows, said: “It would be a real injustice if he now surrendered to Spain.
“Surrender now would be unfair and oppressive.
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“More evidence has been presented to indicate that he is unfit to plead.
“… the Spanish response to all these concerns has been insufficient to allay fears that these [mental health] concerns can be mitigated. “
He added: “If the appeal is not reopened, Mr. Meadows will be handed over to Spain and will travel in circumstances where he is clearly suffering a significant level of psychological pressure and therefore it would be oppressive to affect his expulsion.”
(Image: Liverpool Echo)
Lawyers for the Spanish government argued that steps would be taken to address Mr. Meadows’ disabilities, stating that the flight to his country was “very short” and that special communication cards could be provided, for which he could be trained.
Authorities in Spain are seeking the return of at least five other suspects, all believed to be in UK prisons, to face prosecution.
It has been heard how Mr. Meadows was born deaf, has limited reading and writing skills and has never learned sign language, and although he can read lips, it was claimed that he could only successfully understand lip reading in “Scouse” .
Meadows has previously claimed that she went to Spain on vacation for a few weeks in December 2013. Part of the vacation was to take care of a house, so she was told that she would give her some money.
He said he was not involved in any criminal activity.
Meadows argued that he had stayed at the house and could then go to the pub for lunch or other reasons, but otherwise did nothing else, only realizing he was in trouble when police raided the property.
An order detailing when the extradition will occur will be finalized soon, ending a two-year court battle to stay in the UK.
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