The Criminal Court of Appeal, presided over by Mr Justice Lawrence Quintano, yesterday ruled that an Italian wanted for murder is to be extradited to his home country within the next 10 days.

Giuseppe Lauretta, 42, had been living in St Paul’s Bay. He was arrested following an alert on the Schengen Information System alert and the circulation of a European arrest warrant.

Mr Lauretta is wanted for the murder of Ettore Marcoli, a businessman who was killed in Romentino, in the province of Novara, in January 2010.

Known as ‘Pino Lametta’, the Italian was born in Pforzheim in Germany. In a telephone interview with La Stampa he openly said he was working in Malta, where he had also found love.