Extradition Case Against Jack Warner To Begin In December

PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, CMC – A senior magistrate Friday, adjourned to December 2, the start of the extradition hearing in the case, in which the former FIFA vice president Austin Jack Warner is wanted in the United States, on corruption and mail fraud related charges.

Deputy Chief Magistrate Mark Wellington dismissed attempts by lawyers for Warner, 72, to have the matter thrown out of court, denying a request that the former global football official be discharged, from the provisional arrest warrant from the United States.

Warner’s attorneys had requested the discharge, after the Attorney General Faris al Rawi had delayed the signing of the authority to proceed (ATP) document.
Al Rawi became attorney general following the September 7 general elections, and had requested Chief Magistrate Marcia Ayres-Caesar vary her order, that the authority to proceed be extended, so as to allow him more time to review the extradition documents.

Earlier this week, Magistrate Wellington had said he was a bit troubled by the differing arguments, and requested time to review the document after Queen Counsel James Lewis, who is representing the state, confirmed that the Al Rawi had signed the authority to proceed (ATP) on the extradition case.

Warner’s lawyers argued then, that despite signing the authority to proceed, the state missed the original deadline. They had vowed to challenge the matter and predicted a lengthy process.

Senior Counsel Fyard Hosein said, the failure to sign the ATP prior to the September 16 deadline, meant the warrant should be discharged.

He argued that under Section 12.3, the Magistrate had no grounds to grant an extension, and as such, to avoid the matter facing a Judicial Review over the issue, the warrant should be discharged.

But Lewis argued that there was no real reason to discharge the warrant, as the nature of the proceedings had already changed, due to the ATP. He said the discharge would be purely “academic.”

On Friday, Magistrate Welling acknowledged that the circumstances had changed, and the bail conditions for Warner would continue.

Warner is wanted in the United States on 12 offences related to racketeering, corruption and money laundering, allegedly committed in the jurisdiction of the United States and Trinidad and Tobago, dating as far back as 1990.

US law enforcement authorities also arrested a number of FIFA present and past officials as part of the probe.

The former international football official is on TT$2.5 million (One TT dollar =US$0.16 cents) bail, and has already surrendered his travel documents, and reports to the police twice weekly as part of his bail conditions.

Magistrate Wellington also denied a request by Warner’s lawyers, for additional time to examine the authority to proceed documents, and to consult with their foreign attorneys.

Meanwhile, the continuing corruption crisis gripping world football took another dramatic turn Friday, with the Swiss authorities indicating that they had opened criminal proceedings, against FIFA President Sepp Blatter.

A statement from the Office of the Attorney General there, stated that Blatter had been interrogated following a meeting of the FIFA executive committee on Friday.