An appeal application filed by a man over a court's decision to extradite him to Italy was yesterday declared null and void after the Court of Appeal ruled that the application did not contain the facts surrounding the grounds on which the appeal was based.

On October 4, the Magistrates' Court, as a Court of Committal, had ruled that there were enough reasons for the extradition of Maltese Carmelo Borg and Chinese Wei Wang.

The magistrate had ordered that Mr Borg and Ms Wei be kept in custody to await their extradition to Italy where they are wanted in connection with the Maundy Thursday drowning of six Chinese and Mongolian illegal immigrants about 15 miles off Sicily.

On handing down his decision the magistrate had informed Mr Borg and Ms Wei that they would not be extradited before the expiration of seven days and that they could appeal to the Court of Criminal Appeal.

Consequently Mr Borg filed an appeal claiming that there had been procedural irregularities made by the Magistrates' Court.

Mr Justice Joseph Galea Debono, in the appeal court, evaluated the appeal and ruled that the appeal application is defective "because it does not contain a statement of the facts of the cause and it merely states how the extradition procedures were initiated and stops there, without giving any inkling as to the facts, that is, the procedural irregularities on which this appeal is solely based".

The judge ruled that this rendered the application null and void as pointed out by the Attorney General's representatives.

For that reason, the judge abstained from taking any further cognisance of the case.

Police Superintendent Peter Paul Zammit, Inspectors Christopher Pullicino, Sandro Zarb and Mario Haber prosecuted with the assistance of Senior Counsel to the Republic Donatella Frendo Dimech.

Lawyers José Herrera and Edward Zammit Lewis represented Mr Borg.