The latest chapter in the long, often confusing saga of Karlheinz Schreiber appeared at an end Sunday as an Ontario judge denied the controversial German-Canadian businessman's latest -- and last -- bid to avoid extradition to Germany.
Schreiber's lawyer, Edward Greenspan, summoned a Superior Court judge to an extraordinary hearing on a summer long weekend in Toronto in hopes of winning an injunction for his client that would stave off a one-way trip to Europe that's been a long time coming.
Greenspan's efforts, however, were for naught.
"I don't think in justice you're supposed to weigh how many times you win versus how many times you lose," he said after the hearing as he contemplated the number of court proceedings Schreiber has attended during nearly 10 years in Canada.
"Each case has to be decided on its own merits. The judge decided not to give us an extension, and that ends it."
Superior Court Justice Barbara Conway "made a correct conclusion" in denying Schreiber's bid for an injunction that would have further delayed his extradition, said Crown lawyer Richard Kramer.
As a result of the Sunday ruling, Greenspan said Schreiber was in the process of complying with an order to surrender himself at a Toronto detention centre, and said the extradition process could begin "within minutes" of his arrival.
"I expect they're going to act relatively quickly."
The sudden activity comes hard on the heels of public hearings on Schreiber's controversial financial dealings with former prime minister Brian Mulroney, which formally ended on Friday, Kramer said. At that point, Justice Minister Rob Nicholson set the extradition wheels in motion, he added.
"Immediately following that, the minister issued his reasons requiring Mr. Schreiber to step into custody."
In a letter sent to Prime Minister Stephen Harper that was read in court, Schreiber was quoted as saying he decided to ask for Sunday's hearing after two officials from the federal Justice Department visited him on Friday night.
He said they served him with a response to a letter from his lawyer, triggering the process requiring him to surrender himself into custody by Sunday evening.
The 75-year-old Schreiber has been fighting an extradition order to Germany, where he is wanted on charges of tax evasion, bribery and fraud.
Greenspan said while it's impossible to say how long Schreiber's trial in Germany might take, or what the outcome might be, Sunday's events don't necessarily mean he won't return to Canada someday.
"People can be transferred from one country to another to serve their sentence," Greenspan said, adding pointedly that he wasn't trying to suggest Schreiber would be convicted.
"There's no reason why in the future he can't or won't return to Canada."
At the same time, it's equally possible Schreiber could end up living out the rest of his life in a German prison, he acknowledged.
