A board at Eskom head office in Sunninghill. The Westminster magistrate’s court in London has adjourned the extradition hearing of former Eskom contractor Michael Harry Lomas to May next year. File photo: Itumeleng English/African News Agency (ANA)
Rustenburg – The extradition hearing of former Eskom contractor Michael Harry Lomas, a United Kingdom citizen, has been postponed to May next year, the Investigating Directorate (ID) said.
The Westminster Magistrate's Court in London adjourned the extradition trial to May 3 due to a new medical reason, ID spokesperson Sindisiwe Seboka said.
"Lomas' legal team brought a submission before the court that the medical condition has a bearing on his mental health," Seboka said.
Lomas was arrested on April 15 in London and granted bail of £100 000 (about R1.7 million). He further submitted an additional surety of £250 000 (about R4.3 million).
His arrest and court appearance emanated from months of talks with the UK authorities over a fraud and corruption case in which Eskom paid R745 million to Tubular Construction Projects. This exposed the state-owned entity to R1.4 billion costs as per the escalation of the contract.
Lomas has been indicted along with four other accused people in South Africa who are expected to appear at the Palm Ridge Specialised Crimes Court on March 30 next year.
"Lomas was out of the country when his co-accused were arrested and he has never cooperated with law enforcement to stand trial. The Investigating Directorate brought an extradition application through the UK central authorities to invoke the European Convention on Extradition of 1957, the UN Convention against Corruption 2003, to assist in bringing Lomas back into South Africa to account,“ Seboka said.
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