You can run, but cannot hide: How Dubai Police nabs suspects

There are seven conditions to be met to have an accused extradited via Interpol, said Maj-Gen Khalil Ibrahim Al Mansouri, Director, Criminal Investigation, Dubai Police.

Firstly, the case must be complete as in the detailed information of the crime, evidence and the sentence issued to the accused.

Also, the two countries involved should have a bilateral or multilateral extradition treaty in place.

Maj-Gen Mansouri said the accused must not be a citizen of the state which claimed the arrest. Also, the act the accused committed must be a criminal act as per the law of the requested country as well as the judicial punishment must be at least one year.

Also the requesting state should undertake the principle of reciprocity in the absence of an extradition treaty and that state should undertake that the accused will stand trial only where required.

However, Maj-Gen Mansouri did not disclose the number of people extradited or the number handed over to Dubai. He replied, “Every year there are a number of people who are either brought in or handed over, especially those accused in murder and rape cases or those involved in financial disputes, armed robberies, counterfeiting, etc.

Red Notice:

He said there are four steps to issue an International Red Notice (international arrest warrant).

Firstly, a case must be filed against the wanted person in a police station and then a circular issued locally.

As the next step, the case file must be referred to public prosecution, which will issue an international arrest warrant.

After that, the Criminal Security Department at the Ministry of Interior will finally issue an international arrest warrant against the accused and obtain his red bulletin.

Major-General Mansouri added that any state that seeks an accused must open a recovery file against the person. The file must comprise an international arrest warrant, prosecution investigations report; and the punishment verdict issued by judiciary.

Maj-Gen Mansouri said there are two ways to receive the internationally sought-after accused. One way is for the representative of the requesting country to go and fetch the accused or alternatively, the delegates of the requested state can have the accused extradited.

Upon arrival in the requested country, the accused must be handed over to the party that requested the arrest (police department). The accused should be able to leave the country after the case is wound up.

Steps to arrest

The Dubai Interpol Department was established in 1982, in order to enhance cooperation with Interpol (International Criminal Police Organization) domestically and internationally.

The requesting party [Dubai Police Interpol] must follow up on the issue and make arrests on the basis of official correspondences with the General Secretariat of Interpol.

There are six steps to arrest an accused by issuing a red arrest warrant or an arrest warrant from the requesting state. Firstly, the accused’s name must be verified in the criminal judicial system and conduct thorough investigation before moving to the whereabouts of the accused.

Maj-Gen Mansouri disclosed that the strategy of the Department of Dubai Police Interpol is to get the accused through bilateral and international conventions.

He added there is also the principle of reciprocity applied with some countries in the fight against crime and extradition, as well as the Riyadh Convention on extradition between the Arab states which the UAE joined in 1972.

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