DERMOT McArdle was extradited to Spain on Friday last to serve two years in prison for the manslaughter of his wife – on what would have been their 16th wedding anniversary.
McArdle, from Brookfield, Heynestown, was flown out to begin the sentence for the manslaughter of Kelly Ann Corcoran who died after falling from a hotel balcony while the couple were on holiday in Marbella in February 2000.
Gardaí transported the Dundalk man from Cloverhill prison on Friday last to Dublin airport and handed him over to two Spanish police officers for the 2.35pm flight to Madrid.
The extradition marks the end of a lengthy legal battle after the father-ofthree formally surrendered himself at the High Court in Dublin.
His deportation back to Spain was delayed by one week while Spanish authorities worked out details of his extradition.
As a result of the unexpected delays the 41year-old began the first steps to serving the prison sentence on what would have been his 16th wedding anniversary.
He married Kelly Ann Corcoran on August 5th 1995. After spending his first few days at the Soto del Real prison near Madrid, McArdle was driven over 600 kilometres in a prison van with a Civil Guard escort to the notorious Alhaurin de la Torre prison outside Malaga in southern Spain, where he will serve out his sentence.
The Spanish courts also previously ordered McArdle to pay all costs relating to his legal battle, amounting to €500,000, and awarded €100,000 to Ms. Corcoran's parents and €60,000 to each of his sons.
The Corcoran family welcomed the extradition through a statement read outside the High Court in Dublin on the day McArdle handed himself in.
' The family are very pleased that this is another step in achieving justice for Kelly Ann,' said Peter Moran, brother-in-law.
' We would like to thank all our friends and relatives who have helped us through this difficult time, and we would like to thank the authorities for all their hard work.
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