Germans Agree To Frankel Extradition

Fugitive financier Martin Frankel’s days in Germany may be numbered. Ten days after a German court denied his appeal of his convictions for possessing false passports and diamond smuggling, German authorities have apparently agreed to grant the requests of State and Federal authorities, and return Frankel to the U.S.

Frankel, who’s been in custody in Germany since his arrest in Hamburg in September of 1999, is expected to be extradited soon. Once in the U.S. he faces numerous criminal charges stemming from his fraudulent practices in bilking three insurance companies of as much as $200 million.

He also faces civil claims from insurance regulators in Arkansas, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma and Tennessee for over $600 million in damages stemming from the same scheme.