Adamczewski v District Court In Jelenia Gora Poland
2014
ADMINISTRATIVE COURT
UK
CORAM
- MR JUSTICE CRANSTON
Areas of Law
- Criminal Law and Procedure
- Human Rights Law
2014
ADMINISTRATIVE COURT
UK
CORAM
AI Generated Summary
This case involves the appeal against the appellant's extradition to Poland based on a European Arrest Warrant for making a bank misapply its funds. While the District Judge upheld the extradition, arguing that dual criminality and dishonesty could be inferred, the appellate judge overturned the extradition. The conduct described did not sufficiently establish dishonesty or meet the dual criminality requirement under UK law, thus failing to constitute an extradition offence.
J U D G M E N T
1. MR JUSTICE CRANSTON: This is an appeal against the decision of District Judge Coleman made on 27 May 2014 at the Westminster Magistrates' Court. He ordered the appellant's extradition to Poland on a conviction European Arrest Warrant. That had been issued out of the District Court in Jelenia Gora, Poland on 10 March 2009. The appellant's extradition is sought to serve a sentence of imprisonment of 8 months.
2. The warrant describes the offence as falling within Article 286(1) of the Polish Penal Code, which reads, in translation:
"One who aims at deriving material advantage through making another person misapply own or someone else's property as a consequence of deliberate misinformation or taking advantage of one's misunderstanding of steps being taken, is subject to the imprisonment for the period of 6 months up to 8 years."
The conduct is described as follows:
"In the period between 15 January 2002 and 24 January 2002 in Kowary and Jelenia Gora, Lower-Silesian Province, acting intentionally in continuity of action and in order to obtain financial profit he caused to the bank PKO BP S.A. Department in Jelenia Gora to misapply its property in the amount of 9,057.12 zl (nine thousand and fifty-seven 12.100 PLN) as having possessed personal savings account no [and the number follows] in the said bank he used to take out money by the card VISA Elektron and used to pay for goods, however he had not possessed any financial means on the said account. He acted to the detriment of PKO BP S.A. Department in Jelenia Gora and he committed the abovementioned offence ..."
The warrant states that the appellant had previously been sentenced in 1999 for breaches of section 279(1) and 286(1) of the Penal Code. The Framework List marked in the warrant indicates that the conduct can be categorised as money laundering and carries a maximum sentence of at least 3 years' imprisonment.
3. Before the District Judge it was contended on behalf of the appellant that the European Arrest Warrant did not disclose an extradition offence. It was also submitted on behalf of the appellant that extradition would amount to a disproportionate interference with his and his family's rights under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights.
4. The District Judge considered the background. The appellant had been present at the time of his conviction but failed to surrender to prison in September 2003 when required to do so. He also recorded that through