A GERMAN man facing extradition to the UK for the murder of a Suffolk student could serve a prison sentence in his home country if convicted.

A GERMAN man facing extradition to the UK for the murder of a Suffolk student could serve a prison sentence in his home country if convicted.

David Heiss, 21, is accused of murdering 20-year-old Matthew Pyke, originally from Stowmarket.

Heiss, who lives in a rural village near Frankfurt, allegedly flew to the UK and stabbed Mr Pyke after they met through a website the student ran dedicated to the computer game Advance Wars.

It is alleged the pair argued on the website, where members usually discuss tactics and plots for the game, shortly before Mr Pyke's death on September 19.

Lawyers in Germany said they did not yet know whether Heiss would oppose his extradition to the UK.

Petra Bertelsmeier, a senior district attorney based in Frankfurt, said: “The accused is German so he can be delivered to the UK only if the British authorities will agree to send him back to Germany to serve his sentence.”

She added that Heiss is not expected to be extradited to the UK until November and that will only happen if he does not oppose the application by British police.