Arrest

Republic of Trinidad and Tobago

The International Criminal Court Act 2006

PART II
INTERNATIONAL CRIMES AND OFFENCES AGAINST ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE

Jurisdiction in respect of international crimes

Consent to Prosecutions for International Crimes

13.
(2) Notwithstanding subsection (1), a person charged with an offence under section 9, 10 or 11 may be arrested, or a warrant for his or her arrest may be issued and executed, and the person may be remanded in custody or on bail, even though the consent of the Attorney General to the institution of a prosecution for the offence has not been obtained, but no further proceedings can be taken until that consent has been obtained.

PART II

INTERNATIONAL CRIMES AND OFFENCES AGAINST ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE

Consent to Prosecutions for Offences Against Administration of Justice

22. (1) Proceedings for an offence under sections 15 to 21 may not be instituted in any Trinidad and Tobago court without the consent of the Attorney General.
(2) Notwithstanding (1), a person charged with an offence under sections 15 to 21 may be arrested, or a warrant for his arrest may be issued and executed, and the person may be remanded in custody or on bail, even though the consent of the Attorney General to the institution of a prosecution for the offence has not been obtained, but no further proceedings can be taken until that consent has been obtained.

PART III
GENERAL PROVISIONS RELATING TO REQUESTS FOR ASSISTANCE

24. (1) This Part applies to a request by the ICC for assistance that is made under—
(a) Part 9 of the Statute, namely—
(i) the provisional arrest, arrest and surrender to the ICC of a person in relation to whom the ICC has issued an arrest warrant or given a judgment of conviction;

PART IV
ARREST AND SURRENDER OF PERSON TO ICC

Arrest where Request for Surrender Received
33. (1) If a request for surrender is received, other than a request for provisional arrest referred to in section 32(2), the Attorney General may notify a High Court Judge in writing that it has been made and request that the Judge issue a warrant for the arrest of the person whose surrender is sought.
(2) If a notice is sent to a Judge under subsection (1), the Attorney General must also send to the Judge a copy of the request and supporting documents.
(3) The Attorney General may, if he thinks fit, refuse to notify a High Court Judge under this section.
34. After receiving a request under section 33, the High Court Judge shall issue a warrant in the prescribed form for the arrest of the person if the Judge is satisfied on the basis of information presented to him that—
(a) the person is or is suspected of being in Trinidad and Tobago or may come to Trinidad and Tobago; and
(b) there are reasonable grounds to believe that that person is the person to whom the request for surrender from the ICC relates.
35. (1) The Attorney General may, at any time, by notice in writing, order the cancellation of the warrant.
(2) If the Attorney General orders the cancellation of a warrant under subsection (1), the warrant ceases to have effect and any person arrested under the warrant must be released, unless the person is otherwise liable to be detained in custody.

PART IV
ARREST AND SURRENDER OF PERSON TO ICC

Eligibility for Surrender

43. (3) The person is eligible for surrender if—
(c) the Court is satisfied that the person was arrested in accordance with the proper process as provided in article 59(2)(b) of the Statute; and
(d) the Court is satisfied that the person’s rights were respected as provided in article 59(2)(c) of the Statute.

PART IV
ARREST AND SURRENDER OF PERSON TO ICC

Miscellaneous Provisions Relating to Arrest and Surrender

77. (1) If a person is arrested on a warrant issued under this Part, a police officer may search, without further warrant, the person arrested and may seize any thing, including any sum of money, found on the person or in the person’s possession if the police officer believes on reasonable grounds that the thing on the person or in the person’s possession may be evidence as to the commission of any offence in relation to which the warrant for the arrest was issued for which the surrender of the person is sought by the ICC.
(2) If there is no suitable searcher available at the place where the search is to take place, the person to be searched may be taken to another place to be searched.
(3) Nothing in this section limits or affects the right at common law of a police officer to search a person on that person’s arrest.
(4) If any thing is seized under subsection (1) from the person arrested—
(a) the police officer shall make a report to the Attorney General specifying the items seized and any other relevant information; and
(b) the Attorney General shall, on receipt of the report referred to in paragraph (a), provide the ICC with a report on the seizure.


78. (1) If the Attorney General makes a surrender order or temporary surrender order under this Act, he may also direct that any thing that was seized under section 77 that may be evidence of the offence the person is alleged to have committed or has committed, be delivered with the person on the person’s surrender to the ICC.

(2) If the person cannot be surrendered or temporarily surrendered by reason of the person’s death or escape from custody, the Attorney General may direct that any thing that was seized under section 77 that may be evidence of the offence the person is alleged to have committed or has committed be delivered up to the ICC.
(3) If a person is discharged under this Act without being surrendered or temporarily surrendered, the Attorney General may direct that any thing seized under section 77 be returned to the person from whom it was seized.
(4) The Attorney General may refuse to direct that any thing referred to in subsection (1) or (2) be delivered to the ICC if the thing is required for the investigation of an offence within the jurisdiction of Trinidad and Tobago.
(5) The Attorney General may refuse to direct that any thing referred to in subsection (3) be returned to the person if—
(a) the thing is the subject of a dispute as to who is entitled to it;
(b) the thing is required for the investigation of an offence within the jurisdiction of Trinidad and Tobago; or
(c) possession of the thing by the person would be unlawful in Trinidad and Tobago.


79. (1) If the ICC requests the surrender of a person, and that person is detained in a Trinidad and Tobago prison or any other place in Trinidad and Tobago at any time pending surrender, the superintendent of the prison or the head of the other place shall keep a record of the time spent in custody as if the person was charged with an offence against the law of Trinidad and Tobago and was on remand.

C (2) The superintendent or the head of the other place shall, if requested, provide to the Attorney General a certificate recording—
(a) the date on which the person was admitted to a prison or any other place to be held in custody in relation to the request;
(b) the total period during which the person was detained in custody during the process leading to the surrender of the person in Trinidad and Tobago in relation to the offence; and
(c) whether the person was, at any time during the period in custody in relation to the surrender, also serving a sentence for an offence against Trinidad and Tobago law.
(3) The Minister shall provide to the ICC at the time of the surrender of the person, or as soon as possible after that, a certificate recording the informa¬tion specified in subsection (2) and such other informa¬tion relating to any period spent in custody in relation to the surrender as the ICC may request.
80. (1) This section applies if—
(a) a person is surrendered to the ICC under this Act; and
(b) the ICC requests a waiver of the require¬ments of article 10 1(1) of the Statute which relates to the rule of speciality.

(2) If this section applies, the Minister may consent to the person being proceeded against, punished, or detained for conduct committed before surrender, not being the conduct or course of conduct that forms the basis of the crimes for which that person has been surrendered.
(3) The consent given under subsection (2) may relate to the person’s surrender to another State.
(4) Before giving consent under subsection (2), the Attorney General may—
(a) request that additional information be provided in accordance with article 91 of the Statute; and
(b) seek any assurances from the ICC that the Minister thinks fit.

Rome Statute

Article 87 Requests for cooperation: general provisions

1.

(a) The Court shall have the authority to make requests to States Parties for cooperation. The requests shall be transmitted through the diplomatic channel or any other appropriate channel as may be designated by each State Party upon ratification, acceptance, approval or accession. Subsequent changes to the designation shall be made by each State Party in accordance with the Rules of Procedure and Evidence.

(b) When appropriate, without prejudice to the provisions of subparagraph (a), requests may also be transmitted through the International Criminal Police Organization or any appropriate regional organization.

2. Requests for cooperation and any documents supporting the request shall either be in or be accompanied by a translation into an official language of the requested State or one of the working languages of the Court, in accordance with the choice made by that State upon ratification, acceptance, approval or accession. Subsequent changes to this choice shall be made in accordance with the Rules of Procedure and Evidence.

3. The requested State shall keep confidential a request for cooperation and any documents supporting the request, except to the extent that the disclosure is necessary for execution of the request.

4. In relation to any request for assistance presented under this Part, the Court may take such measures, including measures related to the protection of information, as may be necessary to ensure the safety or physical or psychological well-being of any victims, potential witnesses and their families. The Court may request that any information that is made available under this Part shall be provided and handled in a manner that protects the safety and physical or psychological well-being of any victims, potential witnesses and their families.

5.

(a) The Court may invite any State not party to this Statute to provide assistance under this Part on the basis of an ad hoc arrangement, an agreement with such State or any other appropriate basis.

(b) Where a State not party to this Statute, which has entered into an ad hoc arrangement or an agreement with the Court, fails to cooperate with requests pursuant to any such arrangement or agreement, the Court may so inform the Assembly of States Parties or, where the Security Council referred the matter to the Court, the Security Council.

6. The Court may ask any intergovernmental organization to provide information or documents. The Court may also ask for other forms of cooperation and assistance which may be agreed upon with such an organization and which are in accordance with its competence or mandate.

7. Where a State Party fails to comply with a request to cooperate by the Court contrary to the provisions of this Statute, thereby preventing the Court from exercising its functions and powers under this Statute, the Court may make a finding to that effect and refer the matter to the Assembly of States Parties or, where the Security Council referred the matter to the Court, to the Security Council.

Article 88 Availability of procedures under national law

States Parties shall ensure that there are procedures available under their national law for all of the forms of cooperation which are specified under this Part.

Article 89 Surrender of persons to the Court

1. The Court may transmit a request for the arrest and surrender of a person, together with the material supporting the request outlined in article 91, to any State on the territory of which that person may be found and shall request the cooperation of that State in the arrest and surrender of such a person. States Parties shall, in accordance with the provisions of this Part and the procedure under their national law, comply with requests for arrest and surrender.

2. Where the person sought for surrender brings a challenge before a national court on the basis of the principle of ne bis in idem as provided in article 20, the requested State shall immediately consult with the Court to determine if there has been a relevant ruling on admissibility. If the case is admissible, the requested State shall proceed with the execution of the request. If an admissibility ruling is pending, the requested State may postpone the execution of the request for surrender of the person until the Court makes a determination on admissibility.

3.

(a) A State Party shall authorize, in accordance with its national procedural law, transportation through its territory of a person being surrendered to the Court by another State, except where transit through that State would impede or delay the surrender.

(b) A request by the Court for transit shall be transmitted in accordance with article 87. The request for transit shall contain:

(i) A description of the person being transported;

(ii) A brief statement of the facts of the case and their legal characterization; and

(iii) The warrant for arrest and surrender;

(c) A person being transported shall be detained in custody during the period of transit;

(d) No authorization is required if the person is transported by air and no landing is scheduled on the territory of the transit State;

(e) If an unscheduled landing occurs on the territory of the transit State, that State may require a request for transit from the Court as provided for in subparagraph (b). The transit State shall detain the person being transported until the request for transit is received and the transit is effected, provided that detention for purposes of this subparagraph may not be extended beyond 96 hours from the unscheduled landing unless the request is received within that time.

4. If the person sought is being proceeded against or is serving a sentence in the requested State for a crime different from that for which surrender to the Court is sought, the requested State, after making its decision to grant the request, shall consult with the Court.

Article 90 Competing requests

1. A State Party which receives a request from the Court for the surrender of a person under article 89 shall, if it also receives a request from any other State for the extradition of the same person for the same conduct which forms the basis of the crime for which the Court seeks the person's surrender, notify the Court and the requesting State of that fact.

2. Where the requesting State is a State Party, the requested State shall give priority to the request from the Court if:

(a) The Court has, pursuant to article 18 or 19, made a determination that the case in respect of which surrender is sought is admissible and that determination takes into account the investigation or prosecution conducted by the requesting State in respect of its request for extradition; or

(b) The Court makes the determination described in subparagraph (a) pursuant to the requested State's notification under paragraph 1.

3. Where a determination under paragraph 2 (a) has not been made, the requested State may, at its discretion, pending the determination of the Court under paragraph 2 (b), proceed to deal with the request for extradition from the requesting State but shall not extradite the person until the Court has determined that the case is inadmissible. The Court's determination shall be made on an expedited basis.

4. If the requesting State is a State not Party to this Statute the requested State, if it is not under an international obligation to extradite the person to the requesting State, shall give priority to the request for surrender from the Court, if the Court has determined that the case is admissible.

5. Where a case under paragraph 4 has not been determined to be admissible by the Court, the requested State may, at its discretion, proceed to deal with the request for extradition from the requesting State.

6. In cases where paragraph 4 applies except that the requested State is under an existing international obligation to extradite the person to the requesting State not Party to this Statute, the requested State shall determine whether to surrender the person to the Court or extradite the person to the requesting State. In making its decision, the requested State shall consider all the relevant factors, including but not limited to:

(a) The respective dates of the requests;

(b) The interests of the requesting State including, where relevant, whether the crime was committed in its territory and the nationality of the victims and of the person sought; and

(c) The possibility of subsequent surrender between the Court and the requesting State.

7. Where a State Party which receives a request from the Court for the surrender of a person also receives a request from any State for the extradition of the same person for conduct other than that which constitutes the crime for which the Court seeks the person's surrender:

(a) The requested State shall, if it is not under an existing international obligation to extradite the person to the requesting State, give priority to the request from the Court;

(b) The requested State shall, if it is under an existing international obligation to extradite the person to the requesting State, determine whether to surrender the person to the Court or to extradite the person to the requesting State. In making its decision, the requested State shall consider all the relevant factors, including but not limited to those set out in paragraph 6, but shall give special consideration to the relative nature and gravity of the conduct in question.

Where pursuant to a notification under this article, the Court has determined a case to be inadmissible, and subsequently extradition to the requesting State is refused, the requested State shall notify the Court of this decision.

Article 91 Contents of request for arrest and surrender

1. A request for arrest and surrender shall be made in writing. In urgent cases, a request may be made by any medium capable of delivering a written record, provided that the request shall be confirmed through the channel provided for in article 87, paragraph 1 (a).

2. In the case of a request for the arrest and surrender of a person for whom a warrant of arrest has been issued by the Pre-Trial Chamber under article 58, the request shall contain or be supported by:

(a) Information describing the person sought, sufficient to identify the person, and information as to that person's probable location;

(b) A copy of the warrant of arrest; and

(c) Such documents, statements or information as may be necessary to meet the requirements for the surrender process in the requested State, except that those requirements should not be more burdensome than those applicable to requests for extradition pursuant to treaties or arrangements between the requested State and other States and should, if possible, be less burdensome, taking into account the distinct nature of the Court.

3. In the case of a request for the arrest and surrender of a person already convicted, the request shall contain or be supported by:

(a) A copy of any warrant of arrest for that person;

(b) A copy of the judgement of conviction;

(c) Information to demonstrate that the person sought is the one referred to in the judgement of conviction; and

(d) If the person sought has been sentenced, a copy of the sentence imposed and, in the case of a sentence for imprisonment, a statement of any time already served and the time remaining to be served.

4. Upon the request of the Court, a State Party shall consult with the Court, either generally or with respect to a specific matter, regarding any requirements under its national law that may apply under paragraph 2 (c). During the consultations, the State Party shall advise the Court of the specific requirements of its national law.

Article 92 Provisional arrest

1. In urgent cases, the Court may request the provisional arrest of the person sought, pending presentation of the request for surrender and the documents supporting the request as specified in article 91.

2. The request for provisional arrest shall be made by any medium capable of delivering a written record and shall contain:

(a) Information describing the person sought, sufficient to identify the person, and information as to that person's probable location;

(b) A concise statement of the crimes for which the person's arrest is sought and of the facts which are alleged to constitute those crimes, including, where possible, the date and location of the crime;

(c) A statement of the existence of a warrant of arrest or a judgement of conviction against the person sought; and

(d) A statement that a request for surrender of the person sought will follow.

3. A person who is provisionally arrested may be released from custody if the requested State has not received the request for surrender and the documents supporting the request as specified in article 91 within the time limits specified in the Rules of Procedure and Evidence. However, the person may consent to surrender before the expiration of this period if permitted by the law of the requested State. In such a case, the requested State shall proceed to surrender the person to the Court as soon as possible.

4. The fact that the person sought has been released from custody pursuant to paragraph 3 shall not prejudice the subsequent arrest and surrender of that person if the request for surrender and the documents supporting the request are delivered at a later date.