By IANS
Sydney : India-born surgeon Jayant Patel, linked to 17 deaths in Australia, is preparing for a legal battle to fight extradition from the US, fearing an unfair trial.
According to the accused doctor’s friend, Vijay Mehta, Patel was preparing for a long court battle.
“He is going to fight the extradition,” said Mehta, a senior Texas-based surgeon.
“He doesn’t want to go to Australia because he doesn’t think he will get a fair trial. He thinks the system there is biased and they have already made up their mind.”
The Queensland government had earlier transmitted the extradition request through diplomatic channels to the concerned US authorities.
If US prosecutors approve the request once the final paperwork is completed between Australian and the US government, then Patel could be arrested before Christmas, Sydney Morning Herald reported.
Patel, 57, dubbed “doctor death” in Australia, faces charges relating to the deaths of 17 patients during his stint as director of surgery at the Bundaberg Base Hospital in Queensland between 2003 and 2005.
After the scandal surfaced, he fled to the Portland, Oregon where he presently resides.