AFP image
Zurich:
Swiss police detained Oscar-winning film director Roman Polanski on a US warrant over three-decade-old charges of unlawful sex with a 13-year-old girl, a film festival's organisers said on Sunday.
The controversial 76-year-old director was arrested on Saturday after he arrived to receive a prize at the Zurich film festival, organisers said in a statement.
The organisers said they were "shocked and saddened" by the arrest and would indefinitely postpone awarding the prize, which he was to receive today in honour of his film career.
Polanski, famed for films such as "Rosemary's Baby" and "Chinatown," fled the US in 1978 before being sentenced for his guilty plea to a charge of unlawful sexual intercourse with a 13-year-old girl.
A Los Angeles judge refused in May the fugitive director's bid to dismiss the case after Polanski, who lives in France, failed to appear in court.
Polanski's legal team argued that the film-maker's conviction should be annulled on the grounds of misconduct, claiming the late judge who heard his case in the 1970s had improperly colluded with prosecutors.
The challenge was made after the allegation of misconduct emerged in a documentary released last year "Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired."
The controversial 76-year-old director was arrested on Saturday after he arrived to receive a prize at the Zurich film festival, organisers said in a statement.
The organisers said they were "shocked and saddened" by the arrest and would indefinitely postpone awarding the prize, which he was to receive today in honour of his film career.
Polanski, famed for films such as "Rosemary's Baby" and "Chinatown," fled the US in 1978 before being sentenced for his guilty plea to a charge of unlawful sexual intercourse with a 13-year-old girl.
A Los Angeles judge refused in May the fugitive director's bid to dismiss the case after Polanski, who lives in France, failed to appear in court.
Polanski's legal team argued that the film-maker's conviction should be annulled on the grounds of misconduct, claiming the late judge who heard his case in the 1970s had improperly colluded with prosecutors.
The challenge was made after the allegation of misconduct emerged in a documentary released last year "Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired."
Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world
