Extradition nears in severed limbs case

Mr Wallace's body parts were found in Loch Lomond

The man suspected of murdering a teenager then severing his limbs has suffered another setback in his battle to avoid extradition from the Netherlands.

Dutch Justice Minister Benk Korthals has upheld a decision by the country's supreme court to send him back to Scotland to face trial for the murder of 18-year-old Barry Wallace.

Mr Wallace's severed limbs were found by police in Loch Lomond shortly after he disappeared last December.

His head was discovered 60 miles away by a passer-by on a beach in Troon, Ayrshire.

Barry Wallace: Vanished after a night out

A spokesman for the Ministry of Justice in The Hague said: "The minister has decided to extradite Beggs, from Kilmarnock, Ayrshire, and his lawyer was informed of the decision yesterday."

The 36-year-old can appeal the decision within seven days. If that happens his case would go to a summary hearing at the Supreme Court.

The hearing would be Mr Beggs' last chance to avoid extradition, following a series of court battles since his arrest in Amsterdam at the end of December 1999.

Christmas party

An arrest warrant was issued after he was charged in his absence with abduction and murder in connection with the death of Mr Wallace, a supermarket worker in Kilmarnock.

A massive search was launched for the teenager when he failed to return home from a works Christmas party at the town's Foxbar Hotel.

Police divers found his dismembered arms and legs during a routine training exercise at Rowardennan, Loch Lomond, a few days later.

A woman walking her dog then found his severed head on Barassie Beach, near Troon, while his torso was found by a police search team at Manse Bay, Balmaha, in January this year.

'Negative coverage'

Mr Beggs was subsequently charged with attempting to pervert the course of justice by separating the body parts in an attempt to hinder the police investigation.

His lawyers have maintained through a series of court hearings that the "negative" media coverage of the case would prejudice his chances of receiving a fair trial in Scotland.

But that argument was rejected by judges at Amsterdam's District Court of Justice in April and by appeal judges at the Supreme Court in The Hague in August.

Mr Beggs was also told by Judge Rob Bleckxtoon at the Amsterdam hearing that he had the right to take his case to the European Court of Human Rights if he felt his chances of receiving a fair hearing had been violated.