<p>"The Franco-Polish filmmaker will not be extradited to the United States and the restrictions on his liberty have been lifted," Swiss justice minister Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf announced at a press conference in the Swiss capital Bern, BBC reported.<br /><br />The Swiss announcement virtually means that the Oscar-winning director of 'The Pianist' is free man. Polanski, 76, has been under house arrest in his chalet since December 2009 pending the decision on a US warrant.<br /><br />The warrant originally confined the director to prison before being bailed out on USD 4.5 million.<br /><br />The maker of classics like 'Rosemary's Baby' and 'Macbeth', during his confinement in the chalet, had to face the ignonimity of being fitted with an electronic tracer bracelet.<br />The charges against Polanski flow from allegations that he plied a teenage girl named Samantha Geimer with champagne and drugs during a photo-shoot 34 years ago at the home of his actor friend Jack Nicholson before raping her.<br /><br />The film director, won an Oscar for his 2002 film 'The Pianist', but was unable to collect the award because of his fugitive status.</p>
<p>"The Franco-Polish filmmaker will not be extradited to the United States and the restrictions on his liberty have been lifted," Swiss justice minister Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf announced at a press conference in the Swiss capital Bern, BBC reported.<br /><br />The Swiss announcement virtually means that the Oscar-winning director of 'The Pianist' is free man. Polanski, 76, has been under house arrest in his chalet since December 2009 pending the decision on a US warrant.<br /><br />The warrant originally confined the director to prison before being bailed out on USD 4.5 million.<br /><br />The maker of classics like 'Rosemary's Baby' and 'Macbeth', during his confinement in the chalet, had to face the ignonimity of being fitted with an electronic tracer bracelet.<br />The charges against Polanski flow from allegations that he plied a teenage girl named Samantha Geimer with champagne and drugs during a photo-shoot 34 years ago at the home of his actor friend Jack Nicholson before raping her.<br /><br />The film director, won an Oscar for his 2002 film 'The Pianist', but was unable to collect the award because of his fugitive status.</p>