Cousins extradited over Cyprus death crash

Two cousins are on their way to Cyprus today after they were extradited to serve three-year jail terms for killing a motorcyclist.

Michael Binnington, 23, and Luke Atkinson, 24, attended Belgravia police station in central London this morning.

From there they will be taken to Heathrow Airport where they will be handed over to Cypriot authorities.

Karen Todner, the cousin's lawyer, said they faced a minimum of six months in Nicosia before they could be brought back.

She said: "I just hope their safety is looked after because there was a lot of widespread local anger about this case."

The cousins were passengers in a car being driven Mr Atkinson's uncle, Julian Harrington, in Protaras when it hit a moped, killing the pillion passenger Christos Papiris, 17.

The men shared a tearful farewell with members of their family at the station but were too upset to speak.

Ms Todner said: "I am surprised by the decision of the Supreme Court in this country not to get involved with this case.

"The only thing we can do is get them repatriated to this country as soon as possible.

"I imagine the family will try to go over there to visit and I have arranged for the British High Commission to visit them tomorrow."

The men are expected to serve their sentence in a prison in Nicosia.

Their uncle, also from Witham, is serving 15 years after admitting manslaughter and causing grievous bodily harm.

The men were sentenced in their absence by the Supreme Court of Cyprus in 2008 to three years' jail each.

They were initially acquitted by a Cypriot court in February 2007, but that verdict was overturned by the higher court in January last year after they returned to the UK.