article_snippet.sent: But today it emerged that the 65-year-old's case expired last October and Domenico Rancadore European Arrest Warrant is to be withdrawn.
article_snippet.sent: Sentence dropped: Domenico Rancadore (right and left) fled to Britain in the 1990s and was convicted in his absence in Italy for his role as a 'man of honour' Although his conviction remains intact, Italian law states that a sentence is extinguished once a period of more than double the time of the penalty has passed.
article_snippet.sent: Rancadore's solicitor, Karen Todner said: 'Yesterday the Italian Supreme Court agreed to extinguish the conviction of Domenico Rancadore on the basis that his conviction is too old to sustain a prison sentence. '
article_snippet.sent: I am therefore confident that the Italian government will now withdraw the Italian government application for a European Arrest Warrant and that Domenico Rancadore will be discharged from these proceedings. '
article_snippet.sent: After two sets of proceedings, Italy no longer seeks extradition of Rancadore.'
article_snippet.sent: It transpires that as of October last year the Italians could not actually legally enforce a sentence of imprisonment. '
article_snippet.sent: So certainly from October onwards you would have thought that there would have been some communication from the Italian authorities saying: "Hang on, we may have a problem here and we may not be able to continue with the extradition request". '
article_snippet.sent: Had the Italians said in October the Italians cannot legally enforce a sentence of imprisonment and the Italians therefore have to withdraw the European arrest warrant, I'm sure the Italians court would have encouraged the Italians to do so as quickly as possible.'
article_snippet.sent: Today A court sketch of  Domenico Rancadore emerged that the 65-year-old's case expired last October and One neighbour European Arrest Warrant is to be withdrawn .
article_snippet.sent: That is key to the release of Domenico Rancadore because that loss of time, which obliged Italy to start the procedures afresh, issuing a new European Arrest Warrant, because that year that was lost gave the possibility for the sentence to expire. 'that year that was lost gave the possibility for the sentence to expire gave the possibility to Domenico Rancadore lawyers, who are clever and know the penal code very well, to file an application for the sentence to be declared expired.'
article_snippet.sent: Domenico Rancadore also denied that the hearing in February had been 'useless' because the sentence had not automatically expired until the sentence was confirmed as such by a court in Palermo on March 25.
highlights_snippet.sent: Today it emerged that the 65-year-old's case expired in October last year .