🇮🇹 Italy →

For the mandatory ground for refusal of extradition based on the purpose of political persecution (disguised as a request for surrender for an ordinary offence) to apply, the person concerned must put forward concrete elements from which it can be inferred that surrender would lead to a violation of fundamental rights or, in any event, to persecution on grounds of race, religion, or political opinions. Accordingly, generic fears of being subjected to inhuman or degrading treatment—based on personal or emotional relationships with third parties—are insufficient, where such circumstances bear no connection to the criminal proceedings in respect of which the sentence to be enforced was imposed.

In extradition proceedings, a mandatory ground for refusal arises where the request, formally based on an ordinary offence, in fact conceals a purpose of political persecution, provided that the person concerned submits concrete elements showing that surrender would expose them to a violation of their fundamental rights.

The case concerned a Russian request for extradition from Italy for prosecution in relation to fraud allegedly committed through abuse of official position. The requested person opposed extradition, arguing that the accusation was false and politically motivated because of his opposition activity in Russia. He also produced evidence that he had applied for international protection in Spain before his arrest in Italy and had been authorised to remain there pending determination of that request. The Court of Appeal of Bologna refused extradition. It noted that, although the pending asylum procedure in Spain did not formally create an automatic bar to extradition, it was a relevant element, especially because the Spanish authorities indicated that, had the arrest occurred in Spain, extradition proceedings would have been stayed pending the asylum decision. The Court also found that the defence had substantiated a concrete risk under Article 698 of the Italian Code of Criminal Procedure. The materials produced described repeated human rights violations in Russia, including detention conditions incompatible with human dignity, excessive pre-trial detention, political misuse of detention, coerced confessions and ill-treatment, with particular concern for the region involved in the case. Those general risks were connected to the requested person’s specific situation through evidence suggesting that a co-accused had allegedly been pressured and detained to make accusations against him, and through defence investigations indicating a risk of political retaliation. The Russian authorities failed to respond to specific requests for information on these allegations. The Court therefore held that the combined asylum-related and persecution-risk factors prevented extradition.

The case concerned a European Arrest Warrant issued by the Latvian judicial authority for prosecution in relation to theft, destruction and falsification of documents, and facilitation of illegal immigration. The requested person did not consent to surrender. The Court of Appeal of Bologna held that the legal requirements for execution of the warrant were satisfied. It found that the EAW was issued by a judicial authority, that the underlying arrest measure and the warrant described the alleged facts, and that the evidentiary framework had been legitimately assessed by the issuing authority. The offences were punishable by sentences exceeding the statutory threshold and were also criminal offences under Italian law. The Court rejected the argument that the case was politically motivated. It held that the alleged political nature of the offences was excluded by the content of the warrant and that any alleged political persecution concerning the person whose expatriation had allegedly been facilitated could, at most, affect the surrender of that person, not the surrender of the alleged facilitator. The Court therefore declared that the conditions for surrender to Latvia were met.