Tomasz Weiss & Anor, R (on the application of) v Westminster Magistrates’ Court
| Judge | Lord Justice Bean,Mr Justice Julian |
| Neutral Citation | [2024] EWHC 1256 (Admin) |
| Date | 24 May 2024 |
| Year | 2024 |
| Counsel | Mark Summers Kc,James Stansfeld,Amelia Nice,Joel Smith Kc,Richard Evans |
| Court | King's Bench Division (Administrative Court) |
Neutral Citation Number: [2024] EWHC 1256 (Admin)
Case No: AC-2024-LON-001428/
AC-2024-LON-001416
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE
KING'S BENCH DIVISION
DIVISIONAL COURT
Royal Courts of Justice
Strand, London, WC2A 2LL
Date: 24 May 2024
Before :
LORD JUSTICE BEAN
MR JUSTICE JULIAN KNOWLES
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Between :
THE KING ON THE APPLICATION OF
(1) TOMASZ WEISS
(2)ADRIAN PIETRASZEWSKI
Claimants
- and –
WESTMINSTER MAGISTRATES’ COURT
Defendant
-and-
(1) THAMES & CHILTERN CROWN
PROSECUTION SERVICE
First Interested Party
(2) REGIONAL COURT IN GLIWICE, POLAND
Second Interested Party
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- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Mark Summers KC and James Stansfeld
(instructed by Sonn Macmillan Walker) for the First Claimant
Mark Summers KC and Amelia Nice
(instructed by Michael Carroll & Co Solicitors)for the Second Claimant
Joel Smith KC (instructed by Thames & Chiltern CPS) for the First Interested Party
Richard Evans (instructed by CPS Extradition Unit) for the Second Interested Party
The Defendant did not appear and was not represented
Hearing date: 21 May 2024
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Approved Judgment
This judgment was handed down remotely at 14:00 on 24 May 2024 by circulation to the
parties or their representatives by e-mail and by release to the National Archives.
.............................
Mr Justice Julian Knowles:
Introduction
1. On 21 May 2024 we heard a ‘rolled-up’ permission hearing by the Claimants (Cs) on
their application for judicial review of District Judge Rai’s decision on 27 March
2024 to refuse to issue a witness summons under s 97 of the Magistrates’ Court Act
1980 (MCA 1980) in connection with their extradition proceedings.
2. At the conclusion of Mr Summers KC’s submissions Lord Justice Bean indicated that
we did not need to hear from the Interested Parties (IPs); that permission would be
refused; and that we would put our reasons into writing. This we now do.
Background
3. Cs are UK residents who are presently the subject of extradition arrest warrants
(EAWs) issued by IP2 on 28 February 2023 and 3 April 2023 respectively.
4. The extradition of C1 is sought to prosecute him for two offences, namely, the assault
and murder of Andrzej Mucha, alleged to have been committed in Slough, UK, on 29-
30 November 2021. The extradition of C2 is sought to prosecute him for the same
assault on Mr Mucha, and for an offence equivalent to our offence of perverting the
course of justice relating to the disposal of Mr Mucha’s body. All the conduct
allegedly occurred in the UK.
5. At the time of the EAWs, Cs were in custody to the Reading Crown Court pursuant to
two domestic charges pertaining to the same incident: (a) preventing Mr Mucha’s
lawful burial, and (b) perverting the course of justice on the grounds that they had
concealed the murder of Mr Mucha, including by disposing of the body.
6. The trial was being prosecuted by IP1, and was listed to commence before a High
Court judge in October 2023.
7. IP1 undertook concurrent-jurisdiction decision-making discussions with Poland,
which culminated in IP1 discontinuing the domestic prosecution under s 23A of the
was taken by the CPS on 29 June 2023). Extradition proceedings were accordingly
opened against Cs in July 2023.
8. There are two co-accused in custody in Poland for alleged offences in relation to the
same matter (I will refer to them as KW and AN). Hence, if Cs are extradited, there
will be a joint trial in Poland of all four co-accused for offences arising out of Mr
Mucha’s murder.
9. In their extradition proceedings, Cs are resisting extradition on a number of grounds.
For present purposes two in particular are relevant:
grounds that the UK, not Poland, is the proper forum for their trial and so
extradition would not be in the interests of justice; and
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1 cases
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Tomasz Weiss v Westminster Magistrates' Court
...before her, which is how the adequacy of reasons is to be assessed: see English v Emery Reimbold & Strick Ltd [2002] 1 WLR 2409[2024] EWHC 1256 (Admin) Lord Justice Bean Mr Justice Julian Knowles Case No: AC-2024-LON-001428/ AC-2024-LON-001416 IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE KING'S BENCH ......