Poland will not extradite film-maker Roman Polanski to the US in an almost 40-year-old case, after prosecutors declined to challenge a court ruling against it.

Prosecutors in Krakow, who sought the extradition on behalf of the US, said on Friday they found the court’s refusal of extradition to be “right” and there were no grounds to appeal against it.

The decision closes the case in Poland and means Polanski is free to reside and work in the country.

The director pleaded guilty in 1977 to one count of statutory rape for having sex with a 13-year-old girl during a photoshoot in Los Angeles.