British man ordered to Equatorial Guinea

HARARE, Zimbabwe, May 10 (UPI) -- A court in Zimbabwe has ordered the extradition of a British man accused of plotting to overthrow the president of Equatorial Guinea.

Simon Mann, a former Scots Guards officer and SAS commander, could spend his life in a prison where Amnesty International has said conditions are "life threatening" because of overcrowding and a lack of food and medical care, the Times of London reported.

Mann has denied being involved in a coup attempt to overthrow President Obiang Nguema Mbasogo. When he and 61 men where arrested picking up weapons in Zimbabwe in 2004, he said they were going to provide security at diamond mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Mark Thatcher, the son of former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, pleaded guilty to unknowingly financing the alleged coup attempt and was fined nearly $540,000 in South Africa.

Mann was due to be released from a Zimbabwe prison when a magistrate ordered his extradition. His lawyer vowed to appeal but feared his client would be taken out of the country before the appeal is filed.