Amanda Todd's alleged tormentor loses another lawyer
Aydin Coban's lawyer quits right before trial starts in the Netherlands
The man accused of extorting Amanda Todd, the B.C. teenager who later killed herself, is without a defence lawyer for the second time this year, one day before separate court proceedings are to begin in the Netherlands, the fifth estate has learned.
Aydin Coban faces five charges in Canada relating to the 15-year-old's suicide in 2012, including extortion, internet luring, criminal harassment and the possession and distribution of child pornography.
He also faces child pornography production charges, not related to Todd, in the Netherlands. That trial begins tomorrow.
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Coban fired his original lawyer, Christian Van Dijk, in mid-March.
Van Dijk's replacement, Robert Malewicz, was hired with only 28 days to prepare.
Malewicz quit Thursday after being denied a delay in proceedings, which he said he needed to go through more than 20,000 documents relating to Coban's case.
Malewicz said he'd have to read 90 pages an hour to be up to date in time for the trial.
Dutch prosecutors did not grant the delay. They said the alleged victims in the case need justice.
Prosecutors said the trial will go ahead tomorrow, and have confirmed they are searching for a new lawyer for Coban.
Canada seeks extradition
Coban was arrested in January 2014 in relation to an investigation involving Dutch victims who were harassed online. He was charged with nine offences, including indecent assault and production and dissemination of child pornography.
He also faced international charges of producing and distributing child pornography with victims in the Netherlands, Canada, Norway, the U.K. and the United States.
Those charges were dropped in October 2015, and Dutch prosecutors are now only pursuing cases involving an alleged Dutch victim.
The trial in the Netherlands is scheduled through April and May, with a judgment expected on June 13.
Coban is set to have an extradition hearing on June 14, towards a possible trial in Canada on charges related to Todd.
In an email statement, the Department of Justice told the fifth estate that representatives of the attorney general of Canada will not appear in the Dutch court for the extradition hearing.
"Canada's interests will be represented by Dutch officials pursuant to our extradition treaty with the Netherlands," spokesman Andrew Gowing said.