"Israel justice system under scrutiny. "Malka Leifer extradition delayed as Israeli court seeks psychiatric report on alleged paedophile" Ted Baillieu urges Scott Morrison to protest Israeli court 'farce' as Malka Leifer granted bail"
VIDEO - Bulgaria has released Australian Jock Palfreeman, who was convicted of murder in 2009, from an immigration detention cen...
news.com.au
October 16, 2019 10:06am
The Bulgarian government has released Australian Jock Palfreeman, who was convicted of murder in 2009, from an immigration detention centre more than three weeks after a court granted him parole, sparking a political controversy.
Palfreeman’s parole angered nationalist politicians in Bulgaria prompting the chief prosecutor to ask for a review of the ruling by the country’s highest court, which now has two months come up with a decision.
The case has strained relations between Bulgaria and Australia, whose Foreign Minister Marise Payne has expressed “deep disappointment” that Palfreeman was still in custody after being granted parole.
“He will have to show up at an interior ministry office once a week until a ban to leave the country, issued back in 2011, is lifted,” the head of the Interior Ministry’s migration unit, Nikolay Nikolov, told reporters.
Jock Palfreeman reacts as he leaves migrants' detention centre in Busmantsi, Bulgaria. Picture: AP
The 32-year-old has served 11 years of a 20-year sentence since being found guilty of murder and attempted murder in the stabbing of two Bulgarian youths, one of whom died, during a street melee in 2007. Palfreeman has said he acted in self-defence.
Speaking in Bulgarian to reporters after his release, Palfreeman said he would stay with friends and would not attempt to leave Bulgaria before he has the right to do so.
Looking in good health, the bearded Palfreeman said he did not fear for his life despite the protests and would prefer to live in Bulgaria if he had a choice in the matter.
“If I had a choice, I would stay in Bulgaria. For those 12 years, it was only Bulgarians that helped me,” he said.
“Australians became interested in me only recently.
“I will have to go back to Australia after the Bulgarian authorities allow me to do that as I have to sort out some documents.
“Maybe many think that I have had the support and protection from Australia in the past 12 years, but the truth is that all who have helped me were Bulgarians. I have big trust in the Bulgarian people.
Palfreeman was out earlier then an unprecedented intervention by the top Bulgarian prosecutor put him back in.
Prosecutor asks court to put Australian back in Bulgarian jail
September 25, 2019 — 11.35am
Sofia: Bulgaria's chief prosecutor has asked the country's highest court to revoke the parole a lower court granted to Australian Jock Palfreeman who was convicted of fatally stabbing a Bulgarian student during a 2007 brawl.
74 court hearings - Israel Supreme Court clears ways for accused paedophile Malka Leifer's extradition
"Israel justice system under scrutiny."
By David Estcourt December 15, 2020 — 8.30pm
Accused paedophile Malka Leifer has lost an appeal challenging her extradition to Australia at the Supreme Court of Israel, clearing the way for her to stand trial after a six-year legal saga.
The Supreme Court justices said that the ruling finalises “the decision of the appellant as extraditable” to stand trial in Australia.
Israeli Justice Minister Avi Nissenkorn praised the court’s decision and said he would sign the extradition order immediately.
“After long and tormenting years, the time has come to do justice with Leifer’s victims,” he wrote on Twitter.
IMAGE - Malka Leifer (right) appears in a Jerusalem court in February 2018. AP
Ms Leifer, 52, a former Melbourne Principal of the Adass Israel School in Elsternwick in Melbourne's inner south-east is charged with 74 counts of sex abuse against three of her former students.
Sisters Dassi Erlich, Nicole Meyer and Elly Sapper accused Ms Leifer of repeatedly abusing them during her time as headmistress of the school between 2001 and 2008.
Ms Erlich said on Tuesday evening that now that Ms Leifer's return to Australia seemed imminent the sisters were limited in what they could say due to the pending charges, but that they were motivated by a desire to protect others in Ms Leifer's care in Isreal.
"At the end of the day we want to make sure that Malka Leifer receives a fair trial here in Australia, that’s all we want. We want to see justice happen," she told The Age on Tuesday night.
Amichai Stein @AmichaiStein1 #BREAKING: Israel supreme court says Malka Leifer can be extradited to Australia 8:06 PM · Dec 15, 2020 313 53 people are Tweeting about this
"It’s incredible to reach this point after so many years. We’ve always dreamed of it happening, we never gave up hope."
The ex-principal fled to Israel in 2008 after the allegations first emerged. The process to extradite her has stalled several times since charges were laid in 2013.
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews had previously met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in 2018, telling him the only just outcome was for Ms Leifer to face a jury of her peers.
IMAGE - Elly Sapper, Dassi Erlich, Nicole Meyer accuse Malka Leifer of abusing them at an Orthodox Jewish school in Melbourne. Jason South
Adass Israel Girls School was ordered to pay more than $1.1 million in damages to Ms Leifer's alleged victims in 2015.
In 2016, an Israeli judge found Ms Leifer mentally unfit to face extradition to Australia and she was set free.
Attorney-General Christian Porter thanked Israeli authorities for representing the interests of Australia in the proceedings and acknowledged Mr Nissenkorn, for his public commitment to sign the extradition order without delay.
"The allegations against Ms Leifer are very serious and the Australian government remains strongly committed to ensuring that justice is served in this case," Mr Porter said.
"Although this latest development is a significant step forward – possibly the most positive steps thus far - in what has been a long process, there are still steps to be undertaken in Israel.
"Nevertheless this is a significant milestone which should provide alleged victims some hope that this part of the process to bring Ms Leifer to justice in Australia is edging closer to a conclusion."
Josh Burns, the Labor MP for Macnamara, the electorate where the school is located, congratulated the sisters for their determination in fighting for justice.
“They deserve their day in court. And they will finally get it,” Mr Burns said, “and even though it has taken, way, way too long, justice has prevailed.”
Premier Daniel Andrews said the government hoped Ms Leifer would soon be returned to Victoria to face the allegations.
“The fight for justice has been long and painful,” he said, “but it's now one step closer for these brave young women and their families.”
The Supreme Court's reported decision comes after a hearing on December 3 that lasted for more than an hour, where a panel of three judges heard Ms Leifer’s defence lawyers argue against her extradition with claims ranging from the technical to the “absurd”, one judge said.
If the extradition order is signed off by Justice Minister Nissenkorn, Ms Leifer’s extradition would mark the first time a citizen of Israel had been sent to Australia to stand trial.
Defence lawyer Nick Kaufman said in a statement after the Supreme Court's decision that they noted the court "acknowledged both Malka Leifer's mental health issues and that the unique nature of her religious way of life will present considerable difficulties for her in an Australian prison".
"These are considerations which, in our opinion, fully justified the long battle to safeguard her basic human rights,' Mr Kaufman said.
"In light of this, should Malka Leifer be convicted and sentenced to a custodial sentence, we hope that the relevant authorities will accede to a future request that she serve such a sentence in Israel".
The defence is allowed to file another appeal following the justice’s signature.
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