Key Facts
- •Vjaceslavs Vascenkovs appeals an extradition order to Latvia for allegedly providing false information on an unemployment benefit application in 2017 (€6,365.40).
- •The maximum sentence for the offense under section 177(1) of the Latvian Criminal Code is 3 years.
- •Vascenkovs's appeal grounds: disproportionate interference with Article 8 ECHR rights, disproportionate extradition under section 21A(1)(b) of the Extradition Act 2003, and risk of Article 3 ill-treatment due to Latvian prison conditions.
- •Vascenkovs arrived in the UK in April 2020, has been employed, has a recent partner, and provides financial support to family in Latvia.
Legal Principles
Proportionality in extradition
Extradition Act 2003, section 21A(1)(b), (3)
Article 8 ECHR right to private and family life
European Convention on Human Rights, Article 8
Article 3 ECHR prohibition of torture and inhuman or degrading treatment
European Convention on Human Rights, Article 3
Mutual recognition in extradition
Trade and Co-operation Agreement, Article 597, 596, 613; Framework Decision 2002/584/JHA
Seriousness of the offense in proportionality assessment
Criminal Practice Directions 2023, paragraph 12.2; Miraszewski v District Court in Torun, Poland [2015] 1 WLR 3929
Outcomes
Application to amend grounds of appeal (Article 3 ill-treatment) refused.
Presumption of compliance with Article 3 by Latvia; ongoing efforts to address prison violence; no substantial grounds to believe Vascenkovs faces a real risk of Article 3 ill-treatment.
Appeal dismissed.
Extradition is not disproportionate under section 21A(1)(b) of the 2003 Act; Article 8 rights not disproportionately interfered with; District Judge's application of section 21A was appropriate.