Ex-Anglo Irish bank chief's extradition hearing set for March

BOSTON (Reuters) - The former head of Anglo Irish Bank will get a chance to argue against being sent back to his native country to face criminal charges related to the bank's collapse on March 1, a U.S. federal judge said on Tuesday. David Drumm, the bank's former chief executive, was arrested at his Massachusetts home on Oct. 10 after Irish officials asked that he be extradited to face a 33-count criminal indictment related to the collapse of the bank, which was nationalized in early 2009 in a takeover that cost Ireland some 30 billion euros (currently £21.19 billion). He has been kept in custody since his arrest and U.S. Magistrate Judge Donald Cabell has not yet ruled on a plea by Drumm's lawyers earlier this month that he be released on bail ahead of the extradition hearing. At that heading, Drumm assured that judge that he was not a flight risk, saying, "I have friends willing to risk their homes and reputations to support my bail." An Irish court in July sentenced three lower-ranking executives of the bank to serve 18 to 36 months in prison, making them the first bankers jailed since the country's financial crash. ($1 = 0.9391 euros) (Reporting by Scott Malone; Editing by Christian Plumb)