Romanian criminals allowed bail to travel to UK… and EU laws ban deporting them
Crooks travel here to get legal aid to block extradition on the grounds standard two-metre square Romanian jail cells fall foul of EU human rights law
CRIMINALS are being dumped by Romanian courts on Britain — and they then use EU human rights laws to stay here.
Villains including gangsters, smugglers and cash machine crooks are given permission to travel here while on bail.
They then get legal aid to hire lawyers who block their extradition on the grounds standard two-metre square Romanian jail cells fall foul of EU human rights law.
A Sun investigation has revealed Romanian judges are allowing the travel on the flimsiest of excuses — to take a holiday, see relatives or even go to a pigeon fanciers’ fair.
British authorities are powerless to deport them after a landmark European Court of Justice ruling opened the floodgates last year.
Ciggie smuggler Cioanca Catalin had his 16-month jail term delayed so he could go to a pigeon fanciers’ event in the UK.
Unlike his pigeons, he did not fly home.
Anastasescu George Alin was prosecuted for shunning fire checks at his Bucharest nightclub where 64 revellers died in a blaze but was allowed to fly to London. His whereabouts are unknown.
A Romanian legal source said: “There are scores of criminals and suspects using the loophole. Courts in Romania allow it to happen.
“Once given permission to fly to the UK, they know their lawyers will stop them being sent back.”
Other EU states are also angry at the export of Romanian crooks to their countries.
The Ministry of Justice said: “We can’t comment on decisions made in Romania.”
Romania’s General Prosecutor’s Office would not comment on “the business of courts”.