AP NewsBreak: Records show Swiss tipped US to Roman Polanski’s imminent arrival in Zurich
By Thomas Watkins, APTuesday, October 20, 2009
AP NewsBreak: Swiss tipped US to Polanski trip
LOS ANGELES — Newly released documents show that Swiss authorities set in motion the arrest of fugitive director Roman Polanski.
A series of e-mails obtained by The Associated Press show that the Swiss tipped off their U.S. counterparts about Polanski’s imminent arrival at a Zurich film festival.
The Sept. 22 tip culminated four days later with Polanski’s arrest.
U.S. authorities had declined to say how they learned of Polanski’s trip to Zurich, but a public records request shows the information came from the Swiss Federal Office of Justice.
The new details again raise the question of why Switzerland decided to go after Polanski now, even though the 76-year-old director was a frequent visitor to that nation.
Tags: Celebrity, Europe, Los Angeles, North America, Switzerland, United States, Western Europe, Zurich