Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1528842
3 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 3 NOVEMBER 2024 NEWS The magic is on the way! from Monday 4/11 to 10/11 Big on Quality, Lidl on Price Even though every effort has been made to ensure adequate supplies, these items may sell out quickly. Prices do not include decorative material. Prices are valid save errors or omissions. 1kg = € 9.95 1. 99 2x 100g pack 1kg = € 14.27 9. 99 700g pack 1kg = € 26.62 5. 99 225g pack 1kg = € 8.48 3. 39 400g pack With legal amendment approved, Meli can now challenge extradition to US CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Daniel Joe Meli was arrested in February 2024 by the Mal- tese police following an ex- tradition request by the US. Meli allegedly sold and trained criminals in the use of War- zone, a remote access trojan software that bypasses security sys-tems and remotely access- es computers without the vic- tims' knowledge. Earlier this year, in an inter- view with MaltaToday, Meli's parents Chris and Lucianne appealed to the authorities to intervene in the case. The fam- ily had found out that their son's consent to the extradi- tion meant he could face a life- time in an American prison, a far cry from what Meli's lawyer had told him when advising him to agree to ex-tradition. The key change in the law allows individuals who had previously agreed to be extra- dited before the law came into effect to have a second chance to challenge their extradition. They can do this by filing an application with the Court of Criminal Appeal within 15 days of the amendment com- ing into force. The application allows them to formally with- draw their consent and con- test the extradition request through the legal processes already outlined in the Extra- dition Act. During the appeal process, all deadlines related to the extra- dition proceedings are put on hold. If the Court of Criminal Appeal approves the individu- al's request, the case returns to the original court. The individual then gets an- other opportunity to declare whether they agree to the ex- tradition, as if it were the first time the matter was being ad- dressed in court. Once the case is back in the original court, all deadlines and procedures regard-ing the person's arrest and extradition restart. The amendment also states that when someone first ap- pears before the court regard- ing extradition, they must be informed of their right to con- sent and the im-plications of doing so. The court must explain the legal ramifications of con- sent-ing to extradition, pro- vide a reasonable time for consideration, and ensure the consent given is truly volun- tary and informed. In their interview with Mal- taToday last August, the Me- li family had noted that their first lawyer had advised Meli to accept the extradition, giv- ing the family the impression that he could face a maximum of five years' imprisonment in the United States by co-oper- ating with prosecutors. Meli's parents had said they immediately regretted having taken on the lawyer's recom- mendation, once they learnt that their son could face a maximum of 45 years in an American jail. A few days later, Meli ap- pealed the court's decision that green-lighted his extra-dition to the United States. The defendant argued that no attempt had been made to verify whether he had been medically stable and capable of understanding the implication of the extra-dition he was con- senting to, "despite his long history of mental health prob- lems and medical substance abuse." Meli had landed in hot wa- ter after he was accused by US prosecutors that he had alleg- edly sold malware to cyber- criminals. He was caught after allegedly sell-ing malware to an FBI online covert employee from Georgia. From then on- wards, the FBI was tracking his operations, one of several in a global anti-cybercrime inves- tigation that spread as far as Australia. Separately, another man, Prince Onyeoziri Odinakachi from Nigeria, who was be- lieved to be Meli's partner, was arrested in Nigeria, also on 7 February. He is alleged to have provid- ed online customer support to individuals who purchased and used the Warzone malware from June 2019. The Nigerian authorities, however refused an extradition request and tried Odi-nakachi locally. He was sentenced to seven years in prison, which he will serve in his home country. Daniel Joe Meli's parents Chris and Lucianne speaking to MaltaToday (Photo: James Bianchi/MaltaToday)