Former US pilot in Australia to fight extradition order

ANKARA (AA) – A former US pilot in Australia will fight his extradition order after Canberra accepted Washington’s request to extradite him, who is accused of training Chinese pilots, local media reported on Tuesday.

Former US Marine Daniel Edmund Duggan, 54, is being held by Australian police following his arrest in October last year.

A local court in Sydney was told that the country's Attorney General Mark Dreyfus accepted a request from the US to extradite their former citizen just before Christmas, ABC News reported.

However, Duggan's lawyer Dennis Miralis said his client denies the charges and intends to fight the attorney general’s order.

"We will continue to maintain vigorous lines of communication with the Attorney-General," Miralis said, according to the broadcaster.

He also accused the jail authorities of receiving direct instructions from the US, treating his client differently, and holding him in a separate area with convicted terrorists, in violation of the Extradition Act.

The court will hear the case again on Feb. 13.

Duggan was arrested in October after British authorities announced a crackdown on former British military jet and helicopter pilots training pilots in China for a salary of £240,000 ($272,000).

Later, Australia announced that it would investigate whether any of its retired defense pilots were serving in China for military training.

*Writing by Islamuddin Sajid