A FORMER university lecturer who fled to Ireland from a court in Britain before being found guilty of downloading indecent images of children has been arrested in Romania.
Julian Myerscough, 56, a former criminal law lecturer at the University of East Anglia in Norwich, absconded from Ipswich Crown Court towards the final stages of his trial in September 2015.
He was later convicted, in absentia, of 13 counts of possessing indecent images of a child and three counts of breaching a Sexual Harm Prevention Order.
A European Arrest Warrant (EAW) was issued for Myerscough's arrest at the time after he was seen boarding a ferry to Dublin from Wales
Then in October 2015, he was arrested under the EAW by Gardaí at a Dublin hotel just hours before he was due to fly to Budapest, Hungary.
56-year-old former #Lowestoft man who fled a crown court trial almost three years ago, ahead of being found guilty of possessing indecent images of children, has been arrested in Romania. Read more - https://t.co/OSjsIJSM3F
— Suffolk Police (@SuffolkPolice) August 10, 2018
While in custody in Dublin, Myerscough thwarted extradition efforts with a series of appeals over two years.
In August 2017, the High Court in Dublin ordered that he be released as too much time had passed and he was therefore being unlawfully detained.
A month later, Myerscough was sentenced in his absence to three years and six months’ imprisonment and a Sexual Harm Prevention Order at Chelmsford Crown Court.
Suffolk Police have now revealed that Myerscough was arrested and detained by law enforcement officers in Romania on July 26.
His extradition was approved at a Romanian court on August 7 and arrangements are being made for Suffolk Police officers to travel to Bucharest and return him to the UK, the force said.
Myerscough, originally from Bolton but who had been living in Lowestoft, Suffolk, was previously convicted of similar offences in 2010 and given a 15-month prison sentence.
