Extradition proceedings against a Czech man accused of loan fraud have been described in the High Court as 'a massive waste of resources'.
It follows a New Year's Day amnesty for almost a third of prisoners and thousands awaiting trial by Czech President Vaclav Klaus who announced the move to mark 20 years of independence.
Alexandr Malik from Prague, who has been held in Cloverhill Prison for 8 months, is one of those affected by the pardon.
He was living in Co. Meath until his arrest last May on a European Arrest Warrant issued by the Czech authorities.
He was wanted in his home country to serve a 2 years sentence for loan fraud which was imposed in 2008 after he was tried and convicted in his absence.
He was remanded to Cloverhill Prison following his arrest as he was considered a flight risk.
Surrender order overturned
He fought his extradition and finally lost his legal battle at a High Court hearing on December 20th when an order was made for his surrender to the Czech Republic.
That order has been overturned this afternoon by Mr. Justice Colm MacEochaidh after he was informed by State lawyers that the amnesty means Mr. Malik's extradition is no longer required.
The judge asked about costs and noted that the State expended significant resources complying with the request of the Czech Republic who 'having put the State to this trouble, then changed their minds'.
Leo Mulrooney, BL, confirmed Mr. Malik's legal costs were paid under the Attorney-General's scheme and said the case had been 'a massive waste of resources'.
A recent study by the Irish Penal Reform Trust found the average cost of keeping a prisoner is 2011 was over €65,000.
