District Judge Clarke sitting at Westminster Magistrates’ Court discharged Mr VA, a dual Ukrainian and Portuguese national, who was arrested on a Portuguese warrant seeking his surrender to serve a 2.5-year long prison sentence. Mr VA has lived in the UK for the last decade and previously lived in Portugal, where he received a suspended sentence for an offence of domestic violence. The sentence was activated in 2014, after Mr VA moved to the UK in search for work. Mr VA had no family in the UK, he was single and not working because of his poor health.
On the day of Mr VA’s extradition hearing, the Portuguese judicial authority applied to adjourn the hearing so that more information could be provided to the court, although this information was due two months prior. Following defence submissions, the court refused the application to adjourn and proceeded to hear the evidence.
On the evidence before the court, District Judge Clarke found Mr VA was not a fugitive and there was culpable delay in issuing the warrant. The court found Mr VA established that because of the passage of time of 9 years, his extradition to Portugal would be oppressive under section 14. The court also found that extradition would be a disproportionate interference with Mr VA’s Article 8 rights, because the delay significantly diminished the public interest in upholding international extradition obligations. The judge discharged Mr VA under Section 11(3) and Section 21(2) of the Extradition Act 2003.
Mr VA was represented by Tihomir Mak of 9BR Chambers’ extradition and international team. Tihomir was instructed by Ms Seema Dosaj of Berris Law.
