Interpol

Freedom of movement and the ease of quickly changing the country of residence have necessitated cooperation between countries so that the whereabouts of a wanted person can be established and, consequently, extradition can be carried out. A response to these needs became the creation of the International Criminal Police Organization, the so-called Interpol, whose task is to help 195 member states in the fight against all types of crime. The structure of the organization includes, among others, the National Central Bureaus of Interpol located in each member state, whose purpose is to be in constant contact with the organization’s headquarters and to provide each other with information about wanted persons.

Interpol’s main tasks include fighting drug and organized crime, fighting economic crime, searching for fugitive criminals, fighting terrorism, ensuring public security and order, and fighting human trafficking. The aforementioned crime categories have seen the greatest number of locating of those prosecuted as a result of Interpol’s activities.

The main instruments of the organization’s activities are notices – handbills, with different colors and meanings. The publication of a notice (so-called alert) can be requested by authorized authorities of Interpol member states or relevant international institutions. Of all the notices, dedicated to wanted perpetrators of the most serious crimes is the so-called Red Notice. The main purpose of the Interpol Red Notice is to strengthen national searches conducted for the arrest, detention on remand and extradition of a wanted person. A Red Notice is issued for the most serious crimes such as, for example, murder, rape with particular cruelty, drug activity, forgery or participation in organized crime groups. Notification of the issuance of a Red Notice goes to all member states, and in some cases is also published via the Interpol website. The arrest of a person wanted with an Interpol Red Notice is usually associated with the start of extradition procedures. Against this backdrop, the subject of asylum granted to a person at his or her place of residence is also relevant. Asylum is an instrument of defense against extradition.

Each note issued, in turn, corresponds to a diffusion, which is either a request for international cooperation or a warning, a notification sent from one member state to selected National Central Bureau of Interpol. The sending of a diffusion is done at the request of authorized national authorities, so that police activities can be carried out in the territory of another country. Among Interpol’s databases, in which information for international cooperation is collected, it is necessary to point out, among others, the Fingerprint Database, the DNA Profiles Database, the Stolen and Lost Travel Documents Database and the Stolen Vehicles Database.

In the field of Interpol Red Notice cases and extradition proceedings, Kopeć & Zaborowski Law Firm offers:

• detailed discussion of the institution of Red Notice;
• preparation of a request for removal from Interpol’s databases and a request to determine whether a person is currently covered by a notice;
• analysis on the abuse of the institution of Red Notice by law enforcement agencies;
• a detailed discussion of the institution of extradition, its admissibility and consequences;
• analysis of the legal and factual situation of a person subject to an extradition request, including the grounds for refusing to surrender a person to a foreign state;
• participation in the activities undertaken as part of the extradition procedure;
• ongoing contact with the authorities conducting the proceedings and with the competent authorities of the country requesting surrender;
• active participation in the court hearing on the admissibility of surrender and preparation of a complaint in this regard;
• preparation of a letter with the client’s position in an extradition case addressed to the Minister of Justice, the Ombudsman or the Prosecutor General
• analysis of the grounds for cassation and preparation of a cassation in an extradition case;
• preparation of a complaint to the European Court of Human Rights regarding irregularities in extradition proceedings;
• preparation of an application to the Head of the Office for Foreigners for granting the foreigner asylum in Poland;
• in case of refusal to grant asylum – preparation of an application for reconsideration of the case and a complaint to the Voivodship Administrative Court.

Our offer is addressed to:

• persons against whom an Interpol Red Notice has been issued;
• persons against whom extradition proceedings are pending;
• persons who have not yet been charged, but are of interest to Interpol;
• families of persons detained on the basis of an Interpol notice.