Iran's Police Chief Ahmadi Moghaddam has claimed that his country had demanded the extradition of the Sydney hostage taker over fraud charges in 2000, but was rejected by Australian authorities.
"In 1996, he was the manager of a travel agency and committed fraud. He then fled to Malaysia and from there, to Australia, using a fake name. Following legal proceedings, in the year 2000, our judiciary informed Interpol about his crime and demanded Australia extradite him. They stated that they did not have a criminal extradition agreement with Iran and refused to do so."
It's reported that Australia accepted Man Haron Monis as a refugee around that time.
50-year-old Monis held a number of people hostage for 16 hours at a popular Sydney café.
He and two hostages were killed in a barrage of gunfire when police stormed the site.
Memorial activities have been held in Martin Place in downtown Sydney near the spot of the tragic siege to honor the two deceased hostages.
34-year-old Tori Johnson and 38-year-old Katrina Dawson were both regarded by locals as heroes for their deeds during the hostage crisis.
Tori tried to grab the hostage-taker's gun and Katrina was shielding her pregnant colleague from gunfire, actions that resulted in their deaths.
