Legal wrangling likely to delay extradition of leading Pruszkow gangster

A Spanish court has agreed to extradite Andrzej Zielinski, one of the most dangerous members of the Pruszkow gang to Poland. According to the spokeswoman of the Polish prosecutor, Malgorzata Wilkosz-Sliwa, it is likely that he will appeal the court ruling. This would mean the extradition request would have to be processed again in order to become valid and there is no idea exactly how long this would take. Zielinski, nicknamed Slowik (nightingale), had been sought by the police for some time and a warrant for his arrest was issued in September 2000, but he was only apprehended in October 2001 in the Spanish city of Valence. In November, a petition for his extradition was sent to the Spanish courts. Polish prosecutors suspect him of running the gang, as well as corrupting presidential clerks a decade ago. It is only a question of time before the five bosses of the Pruszkow mafia now on trial, are joined by the man who police recognize as the sixth boss of "Pruszkow". (Rzeczpospolita, p. A5) M.T.