“All you know about luck for certain is that it`s bound to change.” (Bret Harte 1836-1902)

General Prosecutor's Office Düsseldorf, Order of 30.01.2017 – 4 Ausl 179/15 - Duesseldorf Higher Regional Court's Order of 23. Oktober 2015 - III AR 195/15 - Interpol Ankara with cancellation of an extradition request.

Our client, a Turkish citizen, was arrested and detained in Dusseldorf initially in autumn 2015 due to an international arrest warrant from Turkey. In Turkey, a criminal sentence against him was intended to be enforced. It was claimed that our client had already committed a criminal offense in Turkey at his young age.

On the basis of their decision from 23 October 2015 the OLG Duesseldorf released our client from custody under strict conditions. We had expressed doubts to the court about the admissibility of the extradition and had explained as well as proved the firm social ties of our client has in Germany. Because of this he was able to return to his family and job in a restaurant again.

Unexpectedly he was then to be arrested a second time in summer 2016 when the Chief Public Prosecutor, in a completely independent decision-making process, came to the conclusion to arrest him again and keep him in prison for the later surrender to Turkey. However, when police appeared at his door our client was not at home. When hours later he heard that the police were searching for him and informed me, I immediately contacted the Chief Public Prosecutor and our client went to the police station as quickly as possible. The Higher Regional Court therefore found that it would not be necessary to take him into custody because he had voluntarily followed the summons and, therefore, released him for a second time.

At the same time the extradition procedure came to a standstill. We were observing other extradition requests from Turkey for some time, because as a result of the coup attempt of 15.07.2016 a special situation in Turkey has been prevailing. For German lawyers in extradition proceedings, the defense against extradition requests from Turkey became easier from day to day. In the meantime, the tendency developed that the German courts were not prepared to expedite surrender in extradition cases to Turkey as long as this situation prevails.

Then we heard the news, that Turkey had proclaimed an amnesty law for prison sentences under two years, because the prisons had to be emptied to accommodate the many arrested judges, prosecutors, journalists, politicians and other dissidents. This amnesty law was also applicable to our client. We immediately informed the Higher Regional Court. In short, although it took several months until Interpol in Ankara sent the official communication, the Turkish authorities withdrew its extradition request against our client.