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Autocratic Governments Abusing Interpol’s Red Notices System
Criminal Defense
Interpol is the world’s international police organization, working with 196 member countries to investigate and prosecute crime across the globe. Recently, however, several of Interpol’s member countries have been found to be abusing the agency’s “red notices” system.
The Use – and Abuse – of Red Notices
Red notices are Interpol’s way to alert law enforcement in member countries about wanted individuals. Interpol has a system to verify red notices to ensure they aren’t being used to target individuals for political, racial, or religious persecution.
This verification system, however, can be circumvented – and recent evidence indicates that it has been. Several countries have submitted fabricated charges to the red notices system in an attempt to locate, detain, or extradite individuals for political or other reasons.
Approximately half the red notices Interpol publishes are based on information from the Russian government. According to critics, Russia has repeatedly attempted to manipulate the red notices system by providing untrue or incomplete information to Interpol.
One prominent example is the case of Bill Browder, a financier who says that Russia has used Interpol’s red notices system repeatedly to attempt to arrest him after Browder and his attorney exposed corruption by Russian government officials.
Browder’s attorney died in prison in 2009. The Russian government convicted Browder of fraud, without Browder present. Since then, the Russian government has asked Interpol to find Browder and return him to Russia for sentencing. Browder was arrested in Spain in 2018 on a Russian warrant provided to Interpol, only to hear later from Interpol that the warrant was no longer valid.
While Russia contributes many of the total red notices, it is not the only nation to attempt to manipulate this system to punish political opponents or members of other groups.
Responses from Interpol and the International Community
In response to the issues about red notices, Interpol has launched efforts to review the information in its databases for compliance with its rules. In 2022, Interpol denied or deleted 304 red notices after determining that the notices violated Interpol’s rules.
The agency has also launched efforts to improve the transparency of its systems and information handling. The goal is to allow for better information tracking, so that Interpol cannot be used by any government worldwide for political purposes – a goal that is central to Interpol’s existence and function, according to an agency spokesperson.
One thing Interpol declines to do is to share information about which countries submit improper information to the red notices system most often. The agency’s general secretary states that Interpol believes disclosing that information is not in the best interests of maintaining justice around the globe.
Some critics are also concerned that Interpol’s efforts to crack down on misuse will backslide when the current secretary general steps down in November 2024. They note that the choice of a new secretary general will have a significant impact on the agency’s systems and integrity going forward.
As Interpol cracks down on the use of red notices, some countries are finding ways to abuse other Interpol systems. For instance, a New York Times article noted that Belarus and Turkey have found ways to use Interpol’s lost or stolen passports database to harass dissidents or bar them from returning to their home countries. For a time, Interpol even prohibited Turkey from using the passport system due to the country’s repeated misuse of its information.
Many countries are also using other alert systems, such as Interpol’s “blue notices” – alerts seeking information on a person – to find people. The number of blue notice requests has doubled over the past ten years, according to Interpol. And while Interpol reviews red notices before issuing them, blue notices aren’t reviewed until after their release.
What to Do If You’re Under Investigation
The results of any criminal proceeding are only as trustworthy as the system that handles that proceeding, from initial investigation through verdict. When countries misuse Interpol systems to track down individuals improperly, both Interpol and the law enforcement teams that participate in that process have their credibility undermined. Worse, the person targeted by the investigation or search can pay a hefty price.
Abuses of Interpol’s red notices system have already cost some individuals months or years of time spent in prison for crimes they did not commit or for activities that aren’t crimes at all. The impact of governments’ misuse of Interpol systems is real and devastating.
If you’re the subject of an Interpol blue or red notice, or if you find yourself under investigation for any reason, don’t wait. Speak to an experienced New York criminal defense attorney.
The team at the Brill Legal Group can help. To learn more, contact us today to schedule a confidential consultation with an experienced criminal defense lawyer.