Tomáš Půta and Maroš Šulej have been in jail since Aug. 26, when police arrested them 7 kilometers (5.5 miles) from Dublin on an international warrant.

Půta, 34, is wanted in the Czech Republic on suspicion of a half-dozen burglaries and the kidnapping and murder of Czech businessman Václav Skála, whose body has not yet been found. Šulej, 34, a former member of the Slovak police special task force, is wanted in connection to several burglaries as well.

Šulej fled to Ireland in January 2002 and was joined by Půta in the fall of 2003.

The Berdych gang is accused of orchestrating the kidnapping and torture of wealthy Czech businesspeople. More than 30 members are now in custody and awaiting sentencing on charges ranging from murder to racketeering.

Irish courts have already turned down bail requests from Půta and Šulej. But according to the Czech Organized Crime Police Squad (ÚOOZ) — which was found to have been aiding the gang in some of its activities — the two are still in touch with gang members in the Czech Republic.

"We are afraid they could arrange to flee to some other country that does not extradite prisoners, should they be released on bail," says ÚOOZ spokeswoman Blanka Kosinová.

The Irish High Court is now weighing a request from the Czech government for the extradition of Půta and Šulej. While the Justice Ministry says it hopes the two will face justice in the Czech Republic soon, a spokesman for the Irish High Court says don't bet on it.

"We have received a request from the Czech government, and are considering it," the official says. "It's a long process."

Půta and Šulej join other notable Czech criminals either in custody or at large overseas whom the government here would like to see extradited. Viktor Kožen˘, the so-called Pirate of Prague, is in the middle of an extradition battle between the Czech Republic and the United States, and remains in custody in the Bahamas. Billionaire Radovan Krejčífi, wanted on murder charges here, is currently on the lam in the Seychelles Islands, off the coast of eastern Africa.

A crucial six minutes

The Justice Ministry has publicly criticized Cloverhill Prison outside Dublin, where Půta and Šulej are in custody, for letting the two make unmonitored daily phone calls.

"The Interior Ministry has ascertained that the two accused can telephone six minutes a day without any obstacles. Naturally, we don't like this," Justice Ministry spokesman Petr Dimun says.

According to the Irish law, every prisoner is entitled to one six-minute telephone call a day.

Irish Prison Service spokesman Mark Curley says the prisoners could choose a maximum of three people, including one lawyer, to call during their six minutes. These people are first contacted by the prison service and asked if they agree to receive the call. Numbers are then put onto a special phone card used specifically for these calls.

Prison officials do not monitor telephone conversations made by prisoners.

The Berdych gang is named after its leader, David Berdych, and is believed to have started its activities in 1996.

Authorities say the gang is responsible for at least one murder, the torture of numerous businesspeople and the theft of cash and goods worth millions of crowns.

Police managed their first arrest of a gang member in 2000, when investigators tracked Ladislav Cyrus trying to withdraw 14 million Kč ($636,942) from the bank account of an abducted businessman.

Cyrus' arrest led to the eventual capture of a further 30 members of the gang, including Berdych, most of whom stood trial Feb. 1 of this year. A court spokesman said sentencing of the gang members was not expected until sometime in the fall.

The capture of so many members of the Berdych gang led to one of the biggest police corruption scandals in this country's history.