Date: 26th October 2009

US asks for Polanski extradition


The US has formally asked Switzerland to extradite film director Roman Polanski on sex charges, Swiss officials say.

Polanski has been wanted in the US since he fled the country in 1978, after pleading guilty to having unlawful sex with an under-age girl.

He was held in Zurich after travelling from France to collect an award at the city's film festival in September.

The director recently lost an appeal to be released on bail from a Swiss jail.

Source: Press Release