A French court has failed to obtain the extradition from the UK of a Welsh man who was convicted in his absence of drug trafficking over 20 years ago.

The High Court found the Regional Court of Lille was ‘wholly and culpably responsible’ for the delay and so said it would be oppressive to order the extradition of Mickael Hiscox.

Hiscox, now 48, told the court he recalled police coming to his home in 2007 or 2008 looking for his brother, who was the subject of extradition proceedings in France. His brother was arrested and extradited, but acquitted of any wrongdoing. 

Hiscox told judges he believed the charge - that he and his brother supplied a man with cocaine to take into France - had been thrown out. In fact, on 18 February 2004, the Criminal Court of Lille found Hiscox guilty in absence of complicity in the unauthorised import of prohibited goods and a warrant was issued for his arrest.

In the 21 years since the alleged commission of the offences and the execution of the warrant, Hiscox had travelled internationally many times, the High Court heard. No one had ever indicated that he was wanted for any offence and he had lived in the same Port Talbot address for the entire time.

Allowing Hiscox’s appeal against his extradition, Mrs Justice Cutts said: ‘It is apparent that at least from 2007, when the appellant’s brother was arrested... the French judicial authority has known of the appellant’s whereabouts. He has never moved from the address where he was present and witnessed his brother’s arrest. 

‘There were unexplained issues with the warrant for the appellant. The UK authorities chased for the amended warrant intermittently for three years with no response. In 2010 the appellant’s name was removed from Interpol circulation. It would seem that this was by the French authorities.’

The judge commented that in the meantime Hiscox had overcome his alcohol addiction and had become a father and grandfather. ‘Notwithstanding the seriousness of the offences, these features of the appellant’s life when set against the delay of 20 years for which the respondent is wholly and culpably responsible make it in my judgment oppressive to order his extradition,’ Mrs Justice Cuts said.