EU passport case man to be extradited

A Dublin man alleged to have advertised Irish passports for sale in the names of children who had died in infancy is to be extradited to Britain to face charges.

The High Court today ordered the extradition of 50-year-old Michael Fallon, from Blackrock, who is wanted by the London Metropolitan police.

Fallon, otherwise known as Micheál Ó Fallúin, of Carysfort Hall, Blackrock, Co Dublin, is to face a charge of conspiracy to defraud the British passport agency by the provision of false applications in the late ‘90s.

Ms Justice Finlay Geoghegan told Fallon she was making the order for his surrender to the British authorities. He is to be held at Cloverhill Prison for the next 15 days before his extradition can take place.

It was Fallon’s second attempt to stop his extradition. The High Court has already ruled the extradition warrants from British police were valid and rejected an application for his release.

Yesterday Ms Justice Finlay Geoghegan made her ruling on a point of law and said she was satisfied the offence conspiracy to defraud on the British extradition warrant was not abolished under new legislation here four years ago and remains an offence in Ireland.

It therefore did not preclude Fallon being surrendered to the British authorities by reason of the absence of a corresponding offence.

The court was previously told in a warrant issued by a Bow Street Magistrate in London that British police believed Fallon and alleged co-conspirators advertised passports for sale in the International Herald Tribune.

Police claimed once a customer made contact they were offered a choice of suitable names and dates of birth from a list.

The customer provided a passport photograph and a signed blank passport application form and these were attached to a duplicate birth certificate of a child who had died in infancy and who never had a passport.

Police said the scam was exposed by the “Tonight with Trevor McDonald” show after a journalist followed up on an ad in the International Herald Tribune offering EU passports for sale for $18,500.