Tough Talking AG: To extradite

“The recent indictment of two locals involved in the Piarco International Airport matter by the US Grand Jury in the Southern District of Florida is but one very public element of the success of the process of Mutual Legal Assitance,” Jeremie said.

“It is our intention to comply with our international obligations by cooperating fully with the American authorities if and when an official extradition request is made as we have had full co-operation from them,” he added.

The AG was addressing the opening ceremony of the REMJA (Ministers of Justice or Attorneys General of the Americas) Working Group on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters and Extradition. Jeremie said the Piarco indictments were one result of the process of mutual legal assistance. He also cited the Desalcott controversy.

“Our mutual assistance has included collaboration with the American FBI for example in the investigation of the Desalcott matter where interviews and evidence-gathering took the investigators to offshore accounts in the nearby British Virgin Islands and as far as the state of Israel.”

Noting sophisticated criminals were using technology such as the Internet to overcome national borders, Jeremie said prosecuting crime should now be an international endeavour involving the sharing of information, experiences and best practice.

The AG paid tribute to a founder of his Ministry’s Central Authority Unit which handles all requests made for extradition and mutual legal assistance. “Much of the credit for the establishment of this unit and Government’s success in prosecuting cross-border offences belongs to my predecessor in office, former attorney general Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj SC.”

Jeremie said Trinidad and Tobago is now enjoying an unprecedented level of success in dealing with transnational crime.

In the period 2005 to 2006 Trinidad and Tobago received ten requests for extraditions and made four requests for extradition. Also Trinidad and Tobago received 12 requests for mutual legal assistance and made 19 requests. “Many of the requests made by Trinidad and Tobago were in respect of evidence gathering for use in several ongoing corruption investigations related to matters currently before the courts and others will be in courts very shortly.”