Hi °C | Lo °C A notorious Basque terrorist convicted of 25 murders is believed to have left Northern Ireland said lawyers seeking to extradite him to Spain.
High Court judges were told Jose Ignacio de Juana Chaos has not reported to police in Belfast or been at an agreed address for more than a month.
An application has now been made to revoke bail granted to the 54-year-old ahead of his scheduled appeal against being ordered back to Spain to face a charge of glorifying terrorism.
De Juana had been living with his wife in west Belfast while fighting the extradition proceedings.
The Basque, who served more than 21 years in jail for his part in an ETA campaign of murders, is wanted over the contents of a letter read out at a rally in San Sebastian the day after his release in August 2008.
He faces the possibility of further imprisonment if convicted of the public justification of terrorist actions.
Last month the Recorder for Belfast rejected claims that he would not receive a fair trial and may face harsher punishment for his political beliefs.
Judge Tom Burgess held that the underlying principles of the European Arrest Warrant procedure required him to have confidence in Spanish justice.
With de Juana's lawyers claiming any further imprisonment would be inhumane and could leave him facing death, he was due to appeal the extradition order next month.
Pending that, he was required to report daily to Grosvenor Road police station, stay at a known address and observe a night-time curfew.
De Juana had received permission to work at two cafes as part of the bail arrangements.
Claiming de Juana was in breach of release conditions, Stephen Ritchie, for the Spanish authorities, told the High Court: “There is good reason to believe he may well have left the jurisdiction.”
The barrister confirmed he was seeking to have bail revoked. The case was adjourned.
