Eric Eoin Marques
THE extradition to the United States of an Irishman
described by the FBI as the "largest facilitator of child porn on the
planet" is almost certain to be challenged after the DPP said she would
not prosecute him here.
Eric Eoin Marques 28, who previously denied he is the
owner and administrator of an anonymous hosting site known as Freedom Hosting,
offered to plead guilty to several counts relating to images on over 100
anonymous websites described as being extremely violent, graphic and depicting
the rape and torture of pre-pubescent children.
Last month Mr Marques indicated in a letter to the DPP that
he would plead guilty, in Ireland, to charges relating to conspiring to
distribute and advertise child pornography, as well as advertising and
distributing child pornography. But yesterday the DPP Claire Loftus said that
she would not bring proceedings against him in Ireland.
Now the US faces a battle to extradite him because of its
harsh sentencing.
Mr Marques faced a maximum 14-year term in Ireland, a term
that would have been significantly reduced by an early guilty plea and the fact
that he has no prior criminal record.
In contrast, he faced between 20 and 30 years on each of the
four charges laid down in an extradition warrant issued from the US state of
Maryland.
The FBI told the Irish High Court that, if convicted, Mr
Marques faced spending the remainder of his natural life in prison as the four
charges could result in a sentence totalling 100 years.
The Justice Minister has power, under Section 17 (2) of the
1965 Extradition Act, to refuse an extradition where the DPP has decided not to
bring proceedings against a suspect.
However, it is highly unlikely that the minister would even
consider a refusal to extradite in this case. A full hearing is now expected
early next year when Mr Marques is set to fight his extradition on a number of
grounds, including the possible jail term he faces if he is surrendered to
America.
Mr Marques, with an address at Mountjoy Square in central
Dublin, has been in custody since his arrest in August. The High Court
previously heard from FBI Special Agent Brooke Donahue, who described Mr
Marques as “the largest facilitator of child porn in the world”.
Barrister Ronan Kennedy, for the Attorney General, told the
High Court that he had received confirmation that the DPP had decided,
yesterday morning, not to bring proceedings against Mr Marques.
Senior counsel for Mr Marques, Remy Farrell, said that the
direction from the DPP was a “very significant event” in the context of the
extradition proceedings.
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