UK court blocks Türkiye’s request to extradite teacher over child abuse
LONDON
A U.K. court has rejected Türkiye’s extradition request for a British teacher accused of sexually abusing a young child while working at a school in Istanbul.
Türkiye earlier demanded the extradition of 54-year-old Rebecca Richardson from Herefordshire, alleging that she assaulted a child at an international school in Istanbul in 2019.
However, during a hearing held at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on June 26, Judge Paul Goldspring dismissed the request.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has been given a two-week window to challenge the ruling at the High Court.
Richardson, a resident of Cradley near Ledbury, was released on bail ahead of the next scheduled hearing on July 9 at the same court.
The defendant left the U.K. in 2000 and spent nearly two decades living abroad. She resided in Türkiye between 2013 and 2019 and also lived in Mexico and Hong Kong.
Doctors who examined the defendant during the legal proceedings reported that she was suffering from depression. Dr. Richard Latham stated that Richardson exhibited symptoms of “moderate depression” and warned that her condition could worsen if she were extradited or detained.
However, Dr. John Tully, who testified via video link, said her condition was “mild” and that there was “no objective indication” she was suffering from severe depression.
