The top court of Chile granted on Thursday a request by French prosecutors to extradite a man suspected of killing a Japanese student in France, where she went missing in 2016.
French authorities suspect that Nicolas Zepeda Contreras, a 29-year-old Chilean man, murdered Narumi Kurosaki, a student from the University of Tsukuba who went missing after dining and returning with Zepeda to the dorm of her university in Besancon, eastern France, on Dec. 4, 2016.
The supreme court said there was evidence suggesting the suspect was the last to see Kurosaki before her disappearance, and that his actions afterward contributed to the murder charge being brought against him.
Shortly after Kurosaki went missing, Zepeda returned to Chile. Kurosaki's body has not been found. Zepeda has denied the allegation.
The top court said it is possible to establish a murder case without the body of the victim, brushing aside an argument to the contrary by the defense.
Zepeda will appeal the court's decision, his lawyer told Kyodo News.
The appeal would be processed by a separate bench of the top court, with the extradition to French authorities on hold until the matter is concluded.
According to the top court, Zepeda can appeal only one time.
