Carles Puigdemont: German prosecutors are seeking extradition of Catalan separatist leader

Former Catalan president could face trial in Spain

Demonstrators hold placards showing Puigdemont, near the prison where he is being held in Neumuenster, Germany (EPA)

German prosecutors are seeking to extradite former Catalan president Carles Puigdemont to Spain, after the pro-independence politician was detained as he attempted to travel through German territory.

Mr Puigdemont has been living in self-imposed exile to avoid charges of rebellion, sedition, and the misuse of public funds – levelled by Madrid in relation to his part in last year’s Catalan independence referendum.

He was trying to travel from Belgium, where he had been living, to Finland, when he was arrested on 25 March by German authorities.

The former president would probably face trial if he returned to Spain.

German prosecutors in the region of Schleswig-Holstein said they had asked their local court to formally put Mr Puigdemont in pre-extradition custody. They said they had conducted an “intensive examination” of the European arrest warrant issued by Spain’s supreme court on 23 March for the politician’s arrest.

“The accusation of rebellion contains at its core the allegation of carrying out an unconstitutional referendum despite expectations of violent disturbances,” the prosecutors said.

It is expected that the Schleswig-Holstein court will take several days to decide on whether to honour the prosecutors’ request.

Mr Puigdemont’s lawyers said the German government should intervene on his behalf, citing a “political dimension” to his arrest and charges.

Following Catalonia’s attempt to declare independence, the Spanish central government suspended home rule in the region and called new local elections.

Though the disparate pro-independence parties together won another slim majority in the Catalan regional parliament and again agreed that Mr Puigdemont should be their first candidate for president, he was unable to be sworn in because he could not physically attend the body’s sitting. Attempts to have him sworn in as president remotely or by proxy failed.