Garry Mann, an avid England football fan, has received a temporary stay of extradition from the European Court of Human Rights over a prison sentence for a riot he participated in while in Portugal during the 2004 UEFA Euro tournament.
The Court of Human Rights stated that it was not ready to make a decision on his case until every domestic legal procedure was attempted. Instead, it referred the question of his extradition and punishment back to UK courts, which should hear the case before the close of March.
A spokeswoman for the court stated that the High Court will still hold a hearing and thus the Human rights judge are not yet ready to hear his case. She also stated that at the moment Mr. Mann will not face imminent extradition due to the fact that UK legal procedures must be completed first.
The Portuguese authorities have requested Mann’s extradition due to the fact he did not serve his two year term in prison in the UK after his deportation for violence that he allegedly helped create in the Alburgerira Algarve resort in June of 2004.
Mann, who is 51, has maintained that he was not given a fair trial since he was taken into custody by the UK in March of last year. He said that he is stuck in limbo between the court systems, which has taken away his ability to work and provide for his family, as well as offer his family any type of closure to the situation.