Extradition, in international law is the process by which one state, upon the request of another, effects the return of a person for trial for a crime punishable by the laws of the requesting state and committed outside the state of refuge. Extraditable persons include those charged with a crime but not yet tried, those tried and convicted who have escaped custody, and those convicted in absentia.
The Halsbury‘s Laws of England defines extradition as the formal surrender by one country to another, based on reciprocal arrangements partly judicial and partly administrative, of an individual accused or convicted of a serious criminal offence committed outside the territory of the extraditing state and within the jurisdiction of the requesting state which, being competent by its own law to try and punish him, requests the individual’s surrender.
The importance of extradition cannot be over emphasized in modern jurisprudence. This is so because the nature of crime has been expounded with the advent of internet and online platforms. Consequently, one can commit an offence in a country without physically stepping into the country or commit an offence in a country and flee to another for refuge. Former US Attorney General, Reno Janet puts it succinctly “This is important, … because too often a criminal will flee a country and return to his or her homeland, hoping to escape justice if extradition is not possible. Now, that will change.”
The major laws that regulate extradition in Nigeria include:
• The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended): the Constitution being the grund norm in Nigeria vests jurisdiction over extradition matters on the Federal High Court.
• The Extradition Act, Cap E 25, Laws of the Federation, 2010: this is the principallegislation for extradition matters.
• The Immigration Act, Cap 11, Laws of the Federation, 2010: this makes provision for the procedure for the transfer of the fugitive criminal to the requesting country.
• Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015: this makes provision for the procedure for search and arrest of fugitives.
• The Evidence Act, Cap E14, Laws of the Federation, 2010: this makes provision for the mode of documentation and tendering of evidence regarding extradition.
Furthermore, in line with the powers conferred on the Attorney General to commence criminal proceedings as provided for in section 174 of the Constitution Federal Republic of Nigeria, Section 6(1) of the Extradition Act also empowers the Attorney General to make a request for the surrender of a fugitive criminal of any country in writing by a diplomatic representative or consular officer of that country and shall be accompanied by a duly authenticated warrant of arrest or certificate of conviction issued in that country”. The state where the individual is to be extradited also reserves the right to grant the individual a fair hearing before any extradition can be carried out.
Recently, the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) Mazi Nnamdi Kanu was extradited into Nigeria amidst clamour that due process was not applied. In the same wise the process for the extradition of Mr Sunday Igboho a yoruba activist has also sparked off controversy as to the procedure been applied by the Nigerian government. It is trite to note that though the Nigerian State by virtue of her Legislations and Treaties with other States has the power of extradtion, it however does not eradicate the need to follow the procedures as contained in the various Laws that regulate Extradtion in the International Community.
The act of extradition is not meant to assist a government whisk an individual from one country to another for punishment, it is to ensure that crime is regulated across borders, to ensure that a persons does not commit a crime in a State and escapes punishment by fleeing to another State. It is meant to combat crime globally.
By Lucky Obahor
