A LATVIAN man wanted in his native country to serve a jail sentence for child sex offences has lost his legal battle to remain in Northern Ireland.
Senior judges in Belfast rejected claims that Maris Zauers could be subjected to inhuman or degrading prison conditions in the Baltic state.
The 29-year-old, who remains in custody, is now expected to be extradited before the end of the year.
Zauers is wanted in Latvia to serve a five-year term imposed for offences of immoral acts with a minor and forcible sexual assault.
He was convicted in 2011 and originally handed a suspended prison sentence.
But last year Latvian authorities cancelled the suspension and instead ordered him to complete the full term behind bars.
Having already left the country by that stage, he was detained in Northern Ireland under a European Arrest Warrant earlier this year.
Zauers mounted a High Court appeal after Belfast County Court ordered his extradition in September.
He argued that prison conditions in Latvia would breach his rights to freedom from torture, inhuman or degrading treatment and punishment under European law.
Dismissing the appeal on Thursday, Lord Chief Justice Sir Declan Morgan pointed out that the issue has already been dealt with by senior judicial figures in England and Wales.
"Having regard to the approach taken there, and the issues considered, it's clear there is no basis upon which to conclude there is any systematic failure in relation to the provision of prison conditions within Latvia," he said.
