7.
Lorrain Osman was extradited to Hong Kong in December 1992
and on 25 June 1993 after protracted negotiations pleaded
guilty to a charge of conspiracy to defraud involving US $
292,000,000. He was sentenced to twelve months imprisonment,
taking into account the period of seven years served on remand
in the UK. Hong Kong consider that sentence to be very lenient indeed. [Trial of George Tan?]
HISTORY OF THE PROCEEDINGS IN FRANCE
8.
In November 1986, the Governor of Hong Kong requested the extradition of Saniman to face charges of theft and false
accounting. Saniman was arrested but on 7 October 1987 the
Chambre d'Accusation declined to recommend his extradition.
The Hong Kong Government (HKG) had been told repeatedly that the French authorities did not require further evidence or any assistance from them. HKG were dismayed to be told that the
reasons for refusal were that there was insufficient evidence
of Saniman's part in the fraud and that the offences were
non-extraditable. Saniman also misled the Court, saying for
example that he had not been in Hong Kong at any material time.
9.
HKG lawyers then began a long process of consultation with French officials and lawyers to prepare a second request for extradition. It was necessary to identify new facts and very
important to characterise the offences correctly. After a
great deal of work, and with the benefit of advice from the
Procureur-General and Advocat-General of the Cour d'Appel de
Paris, a new request for extradition specifying 33 charges was
delivered to the French Government on 31 May 1990. Saniman was
rearrested (and again granted bail) and a hearing took place on
16 October 1990. On 30 October the Chambre d'Accusation de
Versailles ordered Saniman's extradition to face two charges of
conspiracy to defraud and three charges of theft. Saniman's
appeal to the Cour de Cassation against this decision was
dismissed in March 1991.
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