The High Court has ordered the extradition of notorious on-the-run conwoman Farah Damji to the United Kingdom, where she is wanted for fleeing a trial.
However, Ms Damji has been remanded on continuing bail until next week, as the court heard she intends to appeal the decision.
Ms Damji (55) fled to Ireland in February 2020 during her trial in the UK, at which she was convicted in her absence by Southwark Crown Court, London, of twice breaching a restraining order in April and June 2018.
Ms Damji, who presented herself as an Icelandic national and was living in Dublin, is the daughter of a deceased South African-born property tycoon and has a criminal record for fraud and theft stretching back to the 1990s.
She absconded from the London court after three days of her trial, but told the Irish High Court she did so on medical advice.
The UK court issued a bench warrant and she was arrested in Dublin in August 2020.
Covid
On Monday, Ms Damji appeared at the High Court in Dublin before Mr Justice Paul Burns, where she began coughing heavily. The court heard she is recovering from Covid and allowed her to remove her mask.
Mr Justice Burns, in making his order for surrender, said the court had noted medical reports that Ms Damji had been diagnosed with "complex" PTSD and that she was in receipt of psychological therapy in Ireland. He said the court also noted she was instituting legal proceedings in the UK.
The judge said there were "insufficient" grounds to challenge the surrender as Ms Damji would only be serving a "short period" of incarceration in the UK and was free to pursue her litigation efforts. He said there was no evidence that incarceration would interfere with this.
He ordered Ms Damji's surrender to be executed and said her surrender should be completed in a subsequent 10-day period.
Ms Damji's barrister, Joanne Williams BL, said her client intended to appeal the decision.
During a series of hearings, the High Court heard that Ms Damji's father was a multi-millionaire who passed away over 10 years ago but Ms Damji claimed to gardaí his fortune had been put into a trust for his grandchildren and that she did not inherit his wealth.
She has six convictions for 28 offences, which include multiple theft and fraud offences dating back to 1995.
At her bail hearing, Detective Garda Eoin Kane refused to accept Ms Damji was of limited means and said she was in possession of a Rolex and Breitling watch in her apartment when arrested.
