US fugitive took drink and drugs before crash, court told

An American fugitive wanted in the US over a high speed car crash which killed three young students had been drinking and using cannabis in the hours before the fatal accident, a Dublin court heard today.

In a bid to have 27-year-old Frederick David Russell extradited, the High Court was told that he went on the run for over four years in the weeks before he was due to stand trial for the multiple pile-up.