Dominican Republic vows to recapture French pilots

Santo Domingo.-Dominican Republic´s Justice Minister on Tuesday said he´ll request theextradition of the two French pilots who fled the country after being sentencedto 20 years in prison for drug trafficking.

Francisco Dominguez saidhe has contacted the French authorities in order to extradite the pilots PascalJean Fauret and Bruno Odos "toassume their responsibility in the country."

“We were at all timeswere firm in our position opposing the release of the now convicts, which wasordered by the 3rd Instruction Court, even when its ruling clearlyestablished that the foreign pilots were closely linked to the drug shipment,as evidenced by testimony of eye witnesses and irrefutable documentary proof filedby the prosecution and on which stool a criminal trial,” the official said in abrief press conference.

He said aninternational alert was issued for the recapture of the pilots, who on Tuesday helda press conference in France with their lawyer Jean Reinhart.

Dominguez saidauthorities also opened an investigation into how the two men escaped and to identifypossible accomplices, both Dominican and French.

The pilots and twoother French citizens were sentenced to 20 years in prison on August 14, inconnection with the 700 kgs of cocaine seized on board a Falcon executive jetat Punta Cana International Airport, headed to Saint-Tropez, France.