The Catalan leader has fled to Belgium after the Spanish authorities sacked him and his administration in the wake of the declaration of Catalonia’s independence.
According to the Brussels bar association source, former head of the Catalan government Carles Puigdemont has a chance to escape the punishment in Spain.
“If Puigdemont and his colleagues refuse to be extradited to Spain, the advisory chamber will have 15 days to decide on the European arrest warrant. In case of the decision against Puigdemont, he will have 24 hours to file an appeal and the investigators will have 15 days to consider it. Afterward, it is perhaps possible to appeal to the Court of Cassation”, the source told Sputnik in an interview.
On Friday, Belgian prosecutors confirmed that they had received a European arrest warrant for Puigdemont and four other ex-members of the Catalan government, issued by the Spanish court. In the next few days, Belgian judicial investigator is expected to summon Puigdemont for the interrogation.