Home Secretary ponders extradition decision after tycoon loses High Court fight
IndependentNov 27, 2021
The Facts
Mike Lynch, co-founder of software firm Autonomy — and once called the "UK’s Bill Gates" — arrived in San Francisco, Calif. after being extradited to the US Thursday where he will face criminal charges related to Hewlett Packard’s (HP) $11B acquisition of his tech company.
Upon arriving in the US accompanied by the US Marshals Service, Lynch was released from court on a $100M bond on the condition that he be confined in a specific San Francisco location and pay for a 24-hour security detail — “including video surveillance and armed guards.”
The Spin
Narrative A
Mike Lynch’s extradition to the US sets a dangerous precedent that could pave the way for future injustice. The US and UK agreed to an extradition treaty in 2003 that would allow the allies to work together following the 9/11 attacks. Now that treaty is being misused and abused to apply to suspected white-collar criminals instead of the originally intended terrorists. The US is trying to supersede British law and is overstepping its bounds.
Narrative B
Mike Lynch was once a promising tech entrepreneur who was lauded as one of the industry’s stars, but now he's being exposed as a fraud who tricked HP into overpaying billions for his company. Lynch has lost case after case and has evaded extradition for many years due to his wealth and influence. After a decade of legal battles, he can no longer run and must face the consequences of his actions. This is due process in action.
