Geneva - Film director Roman Polanski was set to stay in jail after Swiss justice ministry officials said Tuesday the risk of flight if he were to be released was too high. The Swiss justice ministry deemed that Polanski posed a risk that he would try to flee the Alpine country if released to either house arrest or on bail, options which had previously been floated.
Polanski was arrested on September 26 in Zurich on a United States warrant. He had pleaded guilty to a sexual relationship with a minor in 1977 after giving her drugs and alcohol, but fled sentencing.
Since 1978 he has been considered by US authorities to be a fugitive.
Polanski's lawyers were fighting the extradition to the US and demanding his release. Meanwhile, he remained detained in a Zurich prison.
