Former Fifa vice-president and current Independent Liberal Party (ILP) leader Jack Warner will reappear in the court today for the continuation of his extradition proceedings over 12 fraud charges arising out of a United States investigation into corruption within world football’s governing body.
His appearance before Chief Magistrate Marcia Ayers-Caesar in the Port-of-Spain Eighth Magistrate’s Court would be his second since he was indicted via a provisional warrant after the US Department of Justice announced in May the results of their investigation into him and 13 of his former colleagues.
The T&T Guardian understands that today’s hearing would be relatively short as sources say the Central Authority Unit of the Office of the Attorney General is yet to receive the formal extradition request from US authorities, which Warner’s legal team will need in order to prepare his defence. A source said the documents are expected to arrive in T&T shortly and would be immediately disclosed to Warner to clear the way for the official start of the proceedings before Ayers-Caesar.
According to a BBC report published last Thursday, Swiss authorities, who arrested seven of Warner’s co-accused in a luxury hotel in Zurich hours before the former government minister surrendered to local police, received their formal requests from the US last Wednesday.
The officials, including former Concacaf president and Fifa vice-president Jeffery Webb, will now have an opportunity to respond to the extradition request before Switzerland’s Federal Office of Justice (FOJ) makes its decision.
Their eventual extradition to the US to face trial is expected to take several months as the officials will be given an opportunity to appeal the FOJ’s decision to Switzerland’s Supreme Court. Warner and his former colleagues face a total of 47 charges for allegedly taking part in a scheme involving the soliciting and collecting of bribes for media and marketing rights for several major international football tournaments.
The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) investigation was initiated following allegations of corruption in the bidding process for the Russia 2018 and Qatar 2022 World Cups but was eventually widened to include questionable deals spanning over two decades.
Warner, 72, of Cynthia Drive, Five Rivers, Arouca, is accused of 12 charges related to fraud, racketeering and for engaging in illegal wire transfers. The offences are alleged to have taken place in the United States, T&T and other jurisdictions between 1990 and when Warner quit Fifa in June 2011. He is currently on $2.5 million bail.
Warner is being represented by British Queen’s Counsel Edward Fitzgerald, who led the team of lawyers who successfully challenged the extradition of businessmen Ish Galbaransingh and Steve Ferguson.
His legal team also includes Keith Scotland, Rishi Dass and Nyree Alfonso. Pamela Elder, SC, Jagdeo Singh, Gerald Ramdeen, Alvin Pariagsingh and head of the Central Authority Netram Kowlessar are representing the US’ interest in the case. British Queen’s Counsel James Lewis has been retained to lead the State’s legal team.
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Jack smiling
By JADA LOUTOO (Newsday)
TIME is running out for the United States to make a formal request for the extradition of former FIFA vice president Jack Warner to that country to face charges of racketeering, wire fraud and money laundering conspiracies in connection with a 24-year scheme to enrich himself by corrupting soccer.
“You can’t see I am smiling, all I say is I’m smiling,” Warner said shortly after he appeared in the Port-of-Spain Magistrates’ Court.
It has been 44 days since Warner, 72, was arrested on a provisional warrant and up to late yesterday no formal request for his extradition was made by the United States (US). This was pointed out to Chief Magistrate Marcia Ayers-Caesar yesterday when the Independent Liberal Party (ILP) leader reappeared in the Port-of-Spain Eight Court.
Warner, who surrendered himself to Fraud Squad officers on May 27, after learning of the provisional warrant is currently on $2.5 million bail.
The US has 60 days in which to make the request from the time the provisional warrant was issued and this expires on July 26. If no request is made by then, Warner can apply to have the provisional warrant discharged, his lead counsel Fyard Hosein, SC, explained yesterday.
“The fact is there has been no request for him. Forty-three days have gone by,” Hosein told the Chief Magistrate, as he resisted an application by British Queen’s Counsel Allan Newman for an adjournment to August 10.According to Hosein, if the request is not made by July 26, then there will be nothing before the court to justify holding his client, who will then have to be discharged. “The court’s jurisdiction does not arise until the authority to proceed is issued,” Hosein said. He said there was no leeway under the Extradition (Commonwealth and Foreign Terrorities) Act and was insistent that the US had only 60 days in which to make its request for Warner’s extradition.
Hosein suggested the proceedings be adjourned to July 27 to ascertain whether the formal request for extradition was made by the US and then the Attorney General be given time to review the record of the case provided by the requesting state before he issues an authority for the magistrate to proceed with the extradition hearing. Hosein cited Section 12 (3) of the Extradition Act which provides for a person arrested on a provisional warrant, to be discharged if no authority to proceed has been received by the magistrate once the 60 days have elapsed.
“Forty-three days have gone by without the request being made. The proper adjournment date I think should be July 27. On that day you can do two things: know if the request has been made and if the request has not been made, Mr Warner should go free,” he said.
Hosein added it was against the principle of fundamental justice for Warner to not be released after the expiration of the 60-day period.
“I do not think it is fair to give the Attorney General until August 10 if no request has been made. Mr Warner has rights...And there is a real risk if after 43 days no request has been made,” Hosein said, reminding Ayers-Caesar that his client was suffering from the encumbrances of being on bail.As part of Warner’s bail conditions, he has had to surrender his passport as well as report to the Arouca Police Station twice a week, which he has been adhering to, the Chief Magistrate was informed.
He was jailed for one night at the Port-of-Spain prison on Frederick Street after he was unable to have the bail bond approved by a Clerk of the Peace at the court when he first appeared on May 27.
Newman, at the start of the hearing, requested the August 10 adjournment, saying the Attorney General would require some time to review the record of the case and the particulars of the facts presented to him in the request for extradition before he determine if the evidence justifies him to issue the authority to proceed with the request for the former FIFA vice president’s return to that country to face the charges for which he has been indicted by a US Grand Jury.
This, he said, may go beyond the July 26 deadline. Newman submitted the magistrate had a discretion on whether Warner should be immediately discharged or if the time the provisional arrest remain in effect should be extended.
Newman said he was somewhat surprised that the request had not yet been delivered but noted, “I would be amazed if it is not sent.” Newman said he did not have any objection to the matter being adjourned to the day suggested by Hosein, for the court to be made aware of whether or not the formal request had been received.
After some agreement was arrived at the matter was adjourned to July 27 for mention to determine if the US has made its request after which a new adjournment date will be given. Ayers-Caesar informed the attorneys that the matter on that date will simply be for mention and gave the assurance she will not be moving to discharge Warner on that day if the request for his extradition was not made by that time.