George Gibney to be extradited to Ireland over sex crime charges
By Cate McCurry, PA
Former Irish swimming coach George Gibney has agreed to being extradited from the US to stand trial over multiple sex offence charges.
He also has withdrawn a request to contest his continued detention, which was due to be heard in court on Friday.
Mr Gibney, who had sex offence charges against him dismissed in the 1990s, has lived in the US for years. He was arrested on an Irish extradition warrant earlier this month.
He appeared before Magistrate Judge Daniel C Irick on July 1st for an initial appearance on extradition proceedings.
Mr Gibney’s lawyer, Alec Fitzgerald Hall, said on Thursday that after meeting his client to discuss the case, the former swimming team coach has agreed to be extradited to Ireland.
Court documents, seen by PA media, stated that Mr Gibney met with his lawyer on July 8th and was fully advised of his rights in an extradition proceeding, his right to a detention hearing, and his right to an extradition hearing.
As a result of the meeting, Mr Gibney decided to withdraw his request to a detention hearing and stipulate to detention.
Mr Gibney also told his lawyer that he wanted to waive his extradition hearing and be extradited to Ireland.
“An Affidavit of Waiver of Extradition Hearing will be filed as soon as possible,” the court document stated.
Mr Gibney has been charged with 78 counts of indecent assault and one charge of attempted rape against four minor females aged between eight and 15 years at the time of the alleged offences.
Following his decision, Mr Gibney will be extradited to Ireland and is likely to appear before a Dublin court.
In 2020, the podcast Where Is George Gibney, produced by Second Captains and the BBC, highlighted allegations of abuse against Mr Gibney and prompted new complainants to come forward.
In a statement, a spokesman for the gardaí said: “An Garda Siochana is aware of the arrest of a male aged in his 70s in the United States on foot of an Irish international arrest warrant.
“As this is currently a matter for the US authorities, An Garda Siochana will not be commenting further at this time.”