Jonathan Taylor, the oil industry whistleblower who himself was then accused of bribery and corruption, is being extradited back to Monaco after 10 months in Croatia.
According to reports, British lawyer Jonathan Taylor is being brought to Monaco to face questioning after being arrested in Dubrovnik, Croatia whilst on vacation with his family last July on an Interpol red licence.
The warrant was eventually dismissed, but the Croatian courts decided to hold onto Taylor during ongoing extradition proceedings. They have finally agreed to go along with the extradition ruling.
Taylor had asked the Croatian Justice Ministry to “ensure the EU directives on the protection of whistleblowers are adhered to” and that he be allowed to return home to the UK.
The Whistleblower Protection Directive applies to public and private organisations with 50 or more employees and was explicitly created for the categorical protection of any whistleblowers who reports a violation of EU law.
Taylor went public in 2012, providing evidence that his former employer, Monaco-based Dutch oil company SBM Offshore, was offering bribes in return for big contracts. The company lashed back accusing Taylor of extortion, but the charge was subsequently withdrawn.
The arrest occurred when authorities in the Principality looked to bring Taylor in for questioning about claims that he demanded hush money to keep his mouth closed. Taylor denies the claims and has not been charged with this, or any other offense, as of now.
Whistleblowing International Network (WIN) has taken up Taylor’s cause and said the extradition request “amounts to a clear act of retaliation for his having disclosed the corrupt practices of a major offshore oil firm”.
Anna Myers, CEO of WIN, wrote to the ministry asking them to “exercise your right to refuse to extradite Mr. Taylor to Monaco.”
She went on to say, “Mr. Taylor is not charged with anything as there are no criminal proceedings, nor is there any execution of a judgement for which he is wanted – which are the only two valid legal bases for seeking extradition.”
Monaco authorities, for their part, are saying they simply want to question Taylor to see if further legal proceedings will be necessary.