[WATCH] Parents of man waiting to be extradited to US: ‘Let our son serve time in Malta’

Lucienne and Chris Meli are pleading with the Maltese authorities to use diplomacy so that their son can serve his sentence in Malta. 

The Melis’ 27-year-old son, Daniel Joe Meli, is waiting to be extradited to the United States in connection with the sale of illegal malware on the dark web. 

Daniel was arrested last February in connection with the sale of illegal malware on the dark web. 

In an interview with MaltaToday, Daniel’s parents speak of the shock they went through when their son was arrested. Their initial thoughts, they tell me, were that their son got into some minor trouble. But a day after Daniel’s arrest they were informed that the United States wanted him extradited. 

In court, Daniel’s initial reaction was to accept the extradition, but his parents say given their son’s mental health issues, he was in no position to make such a judgement. Attempts to appeal the decision bore no fruit and Daniel, who is in custody, will now be transferred to the US where he will stand trial. If found guilty on all counts, Daniel could be looking at 45 years in prison. 

Days before Daniel’s transfer to the US, Lucienne and Chris are appealing to the Maltese authorities to apply diplomatic pressure so that if their son is jailed by the US court, he would be able to serve his sentence in Malta. 

The following is an excerpt from the interview. 

The full interview can also be followed on maltatoday.com.mt, Facebook and Spotify. 

Your son was in the news a few months ago. Can you explain why? 

Lucienne: Last February, Daniel, our son was arrested because he was wanted by the FBI for malware practice. I can’t share a lot of details on this, but he was arrested by the Maltese police, and from that day, he spent six months in prison, and we’ve been trying to fight for his rights... It was on the second day of his arrest that they told us he would be extradited… 

On the second day after his arrest? 

Lucienne: They didn’t immediately tell us, when they arrested him; they told us they would only conduct a search and examine the case. The day after, they told us that he would be extradited. We spoke to a lawyer, and he told us to accept the extradition request, so he did. We immediately knew that it was a mistake. From that day on, we could not legally fight the extradition in court. 

Let’s go back a bit. How did you react when he was arrested? 

Lucienne: We were shocked. At first, we said this was joke, or something minor; we’ve never had these sorts of experiences. It was a shock, but you tell yourself, ‘We’ll see how we can handle this’. But apparently this was much bigger and far beyond us. You must trust the police and lawyers because you have no contact with your son... Your only response is ‘I don’t know what’s going on,’ and ‘let’s see how to handle this.’  

When he accepted to be extradited, what did they tell you about the next step? 

Lucienne: Our case is unprecedented. There was never a case of someone wanted for extradition to the United States who accepted and then tried to appeal. So, because there’s no precedent, it gives rise to more interpretation of the law. I’m not a lawyer, so I try to reason it in my own words. 

[...] 

You take the chance to appeal because you have valid reasons, but eventually, the [extradition] law doesn’t let you bring forward new evidence other than what you had already presented. 

Chris: We even went to the Constitutional Court. We brought doctors as witnesses, 15 medical workers who said the same thing: ‘Daniel suffers from anxiety and depression.’ He surely couldn’t take a decision in those 15 minutes that we were forced to act. 

Lucienne: He was in a bad state for years before the arrest; he was in a bad state after the arrest, and he was certified as such. So, he wasn’t in a good state during his arrest.  

So, the only decision he took was in this state… 

Lucienne: Obviously he was in no state to make that decision. Unfortunately, we’re in a position where we cannot fight this through the law, because the law doesn’t allow us to fix a bad decision, so we must abide by what the law says.  

But how is it that the Maltese government allows a Maltese citizen, who allegedly committed a crime in Malta, as the Americans say, to be tried abroad... how is it that the government’s first thought is to send him to the United States? 

When Daniel’s arrest warrant was published by the United States, there was another person wanted for the crime? 

Lucienne: Daniel was arrested together with a Nigerian man. He was also arrested in Nigeria and an extradition request was made by the United States. Nigeria is not in the European Union, and although they have treaties with the United States like Malta does, they chose to try him in Nigeria. They found him guilty, and he is serving his sentence in his country. 

You can compare the cases because they are the same; they involve the same charges. A Nigerian citizen who committed a crime in Nigeria, and his government didn’t choose extradition. They saw the case, tried him, and I found out through the news that he is serving his sentence in Nigeria.  

From the information you have, Daniel can be extradited in a few weeks from now. What’s the procedure after this, what is going to happen? 

Lucienne: They didn’t say anything. All they told us was to leave it up to the Americans and that’s it. Should a Maltese citizen be sent to another country because they have good relations? I wouldn’t accept it if you tell me you’re sending my dog. 

We don’t know which prison he might be sent to. We don’t know if he will be given his medicines that he takes every day. His arthritis medication is expensive, and the Maltese government provides this. This is where other mental health issues arise. 

When I spoke to a lawyer in the United States, he told me that he doubts whether Daniel would be given the medication. We don’t know for certain because we don’t know where he’s going, we know nothing… 

There is still the final chance to appeal. Here, government is to issue a second arrest warrant, and we hope government understands that there is a case to be made for Daniel to serve his sentence in Malta and not in the United States, if he is found guilty.