A YOUNG chef fighting extradition to Cyprus and a three-year jail sentence, says he wants his sentence to be over, so he can put the ordeal behind him.

Michael Binnington and cousin, Luke Atkinson, are facing three years in jail for their involvement in a crash which led to the death of a Cypriot teenager.

The cousins, both from the Witham area, were given a last-minute reprieve from extradition on Friday, when the High Court issued an emergency injunction.

They are now due to find out on Thursday if they can serve their sentences in a British prison.

Mr Binnington, 24, stressed neither man wanted to go to jail, but said if they were allowed to serve their time in the UK, it would be “a bonus”.

He said: “I cannot imagine life without this hanging over us. It has been more than three years since the crash and it’s just become normal day to day life.

“Much as we don’t want to have to do the sentence, when it finally starts, it’ll be the road to the light at the end of the tunnel.”

Mr Binnington, has quit his job as a chef in London while he awaits news of his sentence. In the meantime, he said he was spending time with his family.

He added: “I’ve just been relaxing, but it’s quite hard because we haven’t got a clue what’s happening.

“We are all just sitting here waiting to hear something, really. It’s not as though we can enjoy nice family time in the normal way.”

Since the accident, in 2006, the cousins have always maintained their innocence.

They were originally cleared of manslaughter and causing grievous bodily harm by a court in Larnaca, Cyprus, in February 2007.

However, the acquittals were overturned on appeal in January last year by the Supreme Court of Cyprus and the pair were each sentenced in their absence to three years in jail.

Their uncle, Witham man Julian Harrington, is already serving a 15-year sentence after admitting culpable manslaughter and causing grievous bodily harm.

He was driving the car which collided with the moped.