Budapest court finds Oliver Karafa can be extradited for Hamilton murder charge
A court in Hungary has ordered the extradition of Oliver Karafa, who faces a charge of first-degree murder and attempted murder in connection with a shooting in Hamilton earlier this year.
According to a news release from the Metropolitan Court of Budapest it found during a hearing on Saturday that the conditions for extradition ... were met."
However, the order is not final, the court notes.
The court confirmed Karafa and his lawyers are appealing. The case will now be heard by the Budapest Regional Court of Appeal.
Karafa and his girlfriend, Yun (Lucy) Lu Li, led police on an international manhunt after they fled to Eastern Europe after the Feb. 28 shooting.
Tyler Pratt, a 39-year-old entrepreneur from British Columbia, was killed and his 26-year-old girlfriend hurt in the shooting during a business meeting behind an Arvin Avenue industrial building. She survived, but the shooting led to the loss of her pregnancy.
Police said Karafa and Li fled to Prague, Czech Republic and were on the run until they were arrested in Budapest in June.
Li quickly waived extradition and was flown back to Canada in the custody of Hamilton police.
Karafa, who was born in Slovakia, has been fighting extradition. His extradition hearing has faced several delays, including most recently because of COVID-19.
During a hearing in September, Karafa's lawyers questioned his safety in jail in Canada. At the time Karafa told the court over video that it was a matter of life and death.
The Budapest court says Karafa is the alleged shooter.
Records obtained by the Spectator show Karafa has business ties to the Czech Republic. His ownership in a medical supply company there was dissolved four days after the murder, after the pair flew to Prague.
Karafa's name previously made headlines when he was sentenced to nearly five years in prison in 2014 for killing a friend and personal trainer, David Chiang, in a high-speed, drunk-driving crash.
Li is a triplet, who was an avid social media user. She is the daughter of a high-profile Chinese-Canadian businessperson. She remains in custody in Canada.
Nicole O'Reilly is a crime and justice reporter at The Spectator. noreilly@thespec.com