The year-long battle by United States authorities to have a businessman extradited for allegedly organising heroin shipments to America has moved a step closer to him being handed over.
The bid to extradite Hing Hung Wong, aged 37, resumed in the Auckland District Court yesterday.
Judge Robert Kerr said he was satisfied that enough evidence existed to have Wong sent to America to stand trial.
Wong was wanted in the US on two charges of conspiring to distribute and possessing at least 1kg of heroin between 1985 and 1995.
The drawn-out legal fight began with Wong's arrest in January last year but after a hearing in July, Judge Kerr ruled he was not eligible for surrender.
An appeal to the Auckland High Court in October by lawyer Mike Ruffin, acting on behalf of American authorities, resulted in a reversal of the decision relating to one of the two charges.
Justice Robert Chambers found paperwork that Judge Kerr ruled had not been properly authenticated by US officials was, in fact, correct, and sent the case back to the District Court for reconsideration.
At the start of yesterday's rehearing, Judge Kerr said Wong could be surrendered to stand trial on the second charge.
But defence lawyer John Haigh, QC, tried to persuade Judge Kerr to use his discretionary power to discharge Wong rather than make him face a "third-rate prosecution" in the US.
Any trial in America would be based on "a collection of unreliable evidence from an unreliable number of convicted criminals," Mr Haigh said.
A New York heroin dealer and a secret witness serving time in a foreign prison have alleged Wong was one of the "top-dogs" involved in organising heroin shipments.
Mr Haigh argued extradition should be refused because the US had not acted in good faith in the interests of justice, and it would be unjust to surrender Wong.
Evidence gathered against Wong, such as intercepted telephone conversations, and details about the identity of secret witness "John Doe" had not been provided to the defence and was extremely unfair, Mr Haigh said.
Lawyer Christine Gordon, appearing on behalf of the United States authorities, said exceptional circumstances were needed before judges could use their discretion to discharge a person being lawfully sought.
The hearing will continue today but any decision to extradite Wong could be further delayed by an appeal.
Judge Avinash Deobhakta's decision in November to allow Wong's extradition to Hong Kong to face other drugs charges is being taken to the Court of Appeal.
While the legal wrangling continues, Wong remains on a strict set of bail conditions, under which he must wear a security anklet and pay for security guards to watch him 24 hours a day.
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