MORE THAN 60 suspects were extradited to Ireland from other EU member states between 2005 and 2009 using European arrest warrants, and Ireland issued 180 such warrants in the same period, according to a European Commission report.
The European arrest warrant – which was introduced in 2004 – provides a tool for extraditing people suspected of an offence from one EU member state to another, making it more difficult for criminals to evade justice by moving country.
Between 2005 and 2009, member states issued 54,689 European arrest warrants, leading to 11,630 suspects being surrendered. Among those surrendered were a failed London bomber apprehended in Italy, a German serial killer caught in Spain, a suspected drug smuggler from Malta extradited from the UK, and a gang of armed robbers sought by Italy whose members were then arrested in six different EU countries.
A total of 69 people were extradited to Ireland using the warrant.
Before the arrest warrant came into effect, extradition used to take an average of one year, but this has now been reduced to 16 days when the suspect agrees to surrender, or 48 days when they do not.
The commission’s report said that EU member states can improve how the system – which is based on mutual confidence between national judicial systems – operates.
Member states should use the European arrest warrant with due regard to fundamental rights and the actual need for extradition in each case, it said.
The report also warns that the effectiveness of the arrest warrant can be undermined by a possible over-use in cases that are not very serious.
“The European arrest warrant is an important tool to catch criminals, but member states should ensure that it is used correctly,” said justice commissioner Viviane Reding.
“National governments need to build up trust between their judicial systems so that the European arrest warrant works even more efficiently. In view of their important fundamental rights implications, European arrest warrants should not be issued mechanically, or automatically, for crimes that are not very serious such as bicycle theft.”