Current:Home > FinanceFormer US military pilot’s lawyer tells Sydney court that extradition hearing should be delayed-Angel Dreamer Wealth Society D1 Reviews & Insights
Former US military pilot’s lawyer tells Sydney court that extradition hearing should be delayed
View Date:2024-12-23 20:41:02
SYDNEY (AP) — A lawyer for a former U.S. military pilot accused of illegally training Chinese aviators told a Sydney court on Wednesday that an extradition hearing scheduled for next month should be postponed due to delays in government agencies handing over crucial material.
Boston-born Dan Duggan was arrested by Australian police a year ago near his home in Orange in New South Wales state and is fighting extradition to the United States.
His lawyer, Dennis Miralis, told the Downing Center Local Court that the former U.S. Marine Corps flying instructor will apply to have the Nov. 23 extradition hearing delayed.
A magistrate will hear submissions on that postponement application on Oct. 23.
Outside court, Miralis told reporters that the delay was regrettable because Duggan has been psychologically impacted by being held in maximum-security prisons since his arrest.
“However, at the same time, it’s absolutely essential that Dan’s right to a fair hearing is preserved and nothing is done to prejudice that right,” Miralis said.
“Regrettably it’s very slow. However, it’s absolutely crucial for us to get that material,” Miralis added.
Duggan, 55, has requested documents from government agencies including the national domestic spy agency Australian Security Intelligence Organization, Australian Federal Police and the U.S. Justice Department regarding the allegations against him.
Miralis said the agencies have resisted handing over material to defense lawyers, citing secrecy concerns and the possibility of interference in international relations.
Duggan’s legal team wants to view 2,000 documents relating to their allegation that he was illegally lured from China to Australia in 2022 to be arrested for extradition.
Miralis said police will not hand over all their material until Nov. 17, six days before the scheduled extradition hearing.
Duggan, who became an Australian citizen and gave up his U.S. citizenship, maintains he has done nothing wrong and is an innocent victim of a worsening power struggle between Washington and Beijing.
Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security Christopher Jessup, the regulator of Australia’s six spy agencies, announced in March that he was investigating Duggan’s allegation that the Australian Security Intelligence Organization was part of a U.S. ploy to extradite him.
Duggan returned from China to work in Australia after he received an ASIO security clearance for an aviation license. A few days after his arrival, the ASIO clearance was removed, which his lawyers argue made the job opportunity an illegal lure to a U.S. extradition partner country. They expect Jessup’s findings will provide grounds to oppose extradition and apply for his release from prison on bail before the extradition question is resolved.
Duggan’s grounds for resisting extradition include his claim that the prosecution is political and that the crime he is accused of does not exist under Australian law. The extradition treaty between the two countries states that a person can only be extradited for an allegation that is recognized by both countries as a crime.
Last month, the Australian government introduced in Parliament proposed tougher restrictions on former military personnel who want to train foreign militaries.
In a 2016 indictment from the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., unsealed in late 2022, prosecutors allege Duggan conspired with others to provide training to Chinese military pilots in 2010 and 2012, and possibly at other times, without applying for an appropriate license.
Prosecutors say Duggan received about nine payments totaling around 88,000 Australian dollars ($61,000) and international travel from another conspirator for what was sometimes described as “personal development training.”
Duggan has said the Chinese pilots he trained while he worked for the flying school Test Flying Academy of South Africa in 2011 and 2012 were civilians and nothing he taught was classified.
veryGood! (1933)
Related
- Kentucky officer reprimanded for firing non-lethal rounds in 2020 protests under investigation again
- US Declares Greenhouse Gases a Danger to Public Health and Welfare
- Court dismisses Ivanka Trump from New York attorney general's fraud lawsuit
- 7 die at Panama City Beach this month; sheriff beyond frustrated by ignored warnings
- See Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani's Winning NFL Outing With Kids Zuma and Apollo
- Trump Aims to Speed Pipeline Projects by Limiting State Environmental Reviews
- Bruce Willis’ Daughter Tallulah Shares Emotional Details of His “Decline” With Dementia
- Coal Ash Contaminates Groundwater at 91% of U.S. Coal Plants, Tests Show
- Investigators believe Wisconsin kayaker faked his own death before fleeing to eastern Europe
- Britney Spears Shares Mother-Son Pic Ahead of Kids' Potential Move to Hawaii With Kevin Federline
Ranking
- Jessica Simpson’s Sister Ashlee Simpson Addresses Eric Johnson Breakup Speculation
- Court dismisses Ivanka Trump from New York attorney general's fraud lawsuit
- The Fires May be in California, but the Smoke, and its Health Effects, Travel Across the Country
- How Deep Ocean Wind Turbines Could Power the World
- Steelers shoot for the moon ball, but will offense hold up or wilt in brutal final stretch?
- Launched to great fanfare a few years ago, Lordstown Motors is already bankrupt
- Most pickup trucks have unsafe rear seats, new study finds
- Kim Kardashian Teases Potential New Romance With Fred in Kardashians Teaser
Recommendation
-
College football Week 12 expert picks for every Top 25 game include SEC showdowns
-
RHOBH's Kyle Richards Shares Update on Kathy Hilton Feud After Recent Family Reunion
-
Trump Rolled Back 100+ Environmental Rules. Biden May Focus on Undoing Five of the Biggest Ones
-
Developing Countries Weather Global Warming, Cold Shoulders
-
Martha Stewart playfully pushes Drew Barrymore away in touchy interview
-
Feeding 9 Billion People
-
Jenna Dewan Pens Sweet Message to Her and Channing Tatum's Fierce Daughter Everly on 10th Birthday
-
Video: Covid-19 Will Be Just ‘One of Many’ New Infectious Diseases Spilling Over From Animals to Humans