Court orders extradition of French couple

A magistrate ruled this morning that a French couple that was arrested in Malta on a European arrest warrant, should be extradited to France.

Alain Schmitt, 49, who heads a French sect, and his 47-year-old fiancée, Laurence Liegeois, had the arrest warrant issued against them after they allegedly evaded custody following convictions in France for torture and kidnapping, among other things.

Their lawyer in Malta, Dr Emy Bezzina, said he would appeal the extradition order.

Last week the couple sought permission to marry in Malta but the court said it had no competence to decide that issue.

The Curia, however, said it could not allow the divorced couple to get married in any church or chapel because they did not satisfy the requirements of Canon Law.

"For a marriage to be celebrated in the Catholic Church, a couple have to prove their proper identity, their civil and canonical status and be adequately prepared to receive the sacrament. Procedures according to the teaching of the Church and according to Canon Law are followed in all cases, otherwise the marriage will be invalid," a Curia spokesman said.