Australia will hand over Daniel Duggan, the former US Marine Corps pilot, who is accused of illegally training Chinese aviators, to the United States. On Monday, Australia's Attorney General Mark Dreyfus approved the extradition, ultimately ending Duggan's attempt to avoid his return to the US.
Duggan, the Boston-born 55-year-old ex-US marine, who was in the service for 12 years before immigrating to Australia and giving up his US citizenship, has been in a maximum-security prison since he was arrested in 2022 at his family home in the state of New South Wales. He is the father of six children.
What did Australia's Attorney General say?
Confirming the approval of extradition, Attorney General Dreyfus said, "Duggan was given the opportunity to provide representations as to why he should not be surrendered to the United States. In arriving at my decision, I took into consideration all material in front of me."
Earlier in May, a Sydney judge ruled Duggan could be extradited to the US, leaving an appeal to the attorney general as Duggan's last hope of remaining in Australia.
Background of the case
In a 2016 indictment from the US District Court in Washington, DC, unsealed in late 2022, prosecutors said Duggan conspired with others to provide training to Chinese military pilots in 2010 and 2012, and possibly at other times, without applying for an appropriate license.
Prosecutors say he received payments totalling around 88,000 Australian dollars ($61,000) and international travel from another conspirator for what was sometimes described as “personal development training.”
If convicted, Duggan faces up to 60 years in prison. Notably, he denies the allegations.
“We feel abandoned by the Australian government and deeply disappointed that they have completely failed in their duty to protect an Australian family,” his wife, Saffrine Duggan, said in a statement on Monday. “We are now considering our options."
(With agency inputs)
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