The case of the "baseball player" interacting in Thailand … and the fear of passing the baton to Bahrain

Thai prosecutors filed a request for extradition of Bahraini footballer Hakim Oreibi, who fled his country and obtained refugee status in Australia on Friday in Bahrain.
He will appear before a criminal court in Bangkok on Monday morning. His lawyer, Nadtasiri Bergman, said he would testify in court to convince her not to extradite him.

The case prompted the Australian Prime Minister and the International Football Association (FIFA) to ask Thailand to release Oreibi and return him to Australia on the grounds that he could be tortured in Bahrain.

Authorities arrested Oreibi in November During the honeymoon in BangkokIn accordance with a notification issued by INTERPOL at the request of Bahrain, he fled in 2014 and was granted asylum in Australia.
INTERPOL subsequently canceled the notification, but Thailand continued to detain Ureybi and Bahrain was to take over.

Human rights organizations say the Bahraini authorities tortured Ureybi because of his political brother's activities during the 2011 Arab Spring, which the authorities deny in Bahrain.
"The case is not political but criminal," said Chachom Akabin, director of the international affairs division of the Attorney General's office.

"Bahrain has evidence that Hakim has committed a criminal offense and if he does not want to return to that country, he has to refute it in court and it will take months," he told Reuters.
Oreibi was found guilty of vandalizing a police station in Bahrain. He was sentenced in absentia to 10 years in prison, but he denies any wrongdoing and claims that he was participating in a televised match at the same time as the center.

His wife on Wednesday called on the Thai Prime Minister not to expel him, saying that he would risk imprisonment, torture and possibly death.
"There is also no evidence that he will be tortured when he returns, so he can come back and defend his case in court," Chacchum said.