Rendeiro may be extradited even if the country does not have an agreement with Portugal, says specialist – O Jornal Económico
João Rendeiro can be extradited even if the country where he is located does not have a prior agreement with Portugal. A law professor explains that countries can decide to extradite a particular person even with no agreement in place.
“I don’t think there are countries that never extradite anyone to any other country – even because, in relation to some crimes, there are UN multilateral conventions, ratified by most States, which are not extradited”, he begins by telling JE Pedro Caeiro .
“Perhaps most States still require the existence of a treaty or convention to carry out extradition, but this is not an absolute principle”, adds the professor at the Faculty of Law of the University of Coimbra.
“Even in cases where there is no extradition treaty, a State can – if that is its domestic law – extradite wanted persons, based on an ad hoc agreement with the requesting State and on a promise of reciprocity”, finally.
The jurist even gives the example of Portugal “which can request and grant extradition even in the absence of an international treaty”.
This is a topic in which Pedro Caeiro has specialized, having been responsible for coordinating the book on criminal law published in 2015: “Themes of extradition and surrender”.
João Rendeiro is convicted in three cases related to the BPP case, with ten, five and three years in prison for crimes of qualified fraud, tax fraud, breach of trust, money laundering, forgery of documents and computer forgery.
The banker on the run from Portuguese justice may be in Singapore or Belize, countries separated by a distance of 17,000 kilometers, as several national media have already advanced.
The former president of Banco Privado Português (BPP) will have left London in September for Brazil, to then fly to the Asian country, which has no extradition agreement with Portugal, according to the “CM” who also revealed that in March of 2009, three months after leaving the presidency of the BPP, the banker will have transferred 7.9 million euros, precisely, to Singapore.
“JN”, reveals that João Rendeiro was preparing his escape to Central America for several months after having spent a summer vacation in Costa Rica, also in Central America.
In turn, a “TVI” revealing the banker on the run from Portuguese justice, a private jet to leave London for a country outside Europe.
The banker on the run from Portuguese justice has a turnover of more than 21.88 million euros from an offshore company (Oltar Investments Ltd based in the British Virgin Islands, in the Caribbean), revealed the “CM”. This money will be transferred through an account in Switzerland that had João Rendeiro as the last beneficiary.
These data are part of a report by the Tax Authority on the assets of former BPP administrators. Thus, between January 1, 1999 and December 31, 2008, inflows reached 21.8 million euros, and outflows reached 12.1 million.