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“[…] At first glance, this might sound like the end of Jack Warner’s ordeal. If the court sets him free, why not get on a plane and resume life abroad?
“The reality is far harsher: Warner’s freedom would be limited to Trinidad and Tobago. Step outside, and he risks arrest almost anywhere in the world. The United States has not dropped its case…”
The following Letter to the Editor on the implications of former Fifa vice-president and Minister of National Security Jack Warner’s success against a US extradition request was submitted to Wired868 by Mohan Ramcharan, a Birmingham-based lawyer:
(Copyright AFP 2015.)
News broke in Trinidad that the extradition case against Jack Warner, former Fifa vice-president, has been fatally undermined.
Senior Counsel advising the Attorney General concluded that the state misrepresented the existence of a “special arrangement” with the United States that was meant to guarantee Warner’s legal protections.
With this revelation, the Attorney General made concessions, and the High Court is now considering whether Warner’s bail conditions and extradition order should be lifted.
At first glance, this might sound like the end of Warner’s ordeal. If the court sets him free, why not get on a plane and resume life abroad?
(Copyright Diego Urdaneta/ AFP 2015.)
The reality is far harsher: Warner’s freedom would be limited to Trinidad and Tobago. Step outside, and he risks arrest almost anywhere in the world.
The United States has not dropped its case. Warner still faces an indictment in the Eastern District of New York on charges of racketeering, wire fraud, and bribery. These stem from the sweeping Fifa corruption scandal.
A Trinidadian court ruling does nothing to erase or weaken that indictment. To the US justice system, Warner remains a wanted defendant.
Looking is Fifa vice-president and Concacaf president Jack Warner.
(Official White House Photo by Pete Souza.)
Since 2015, Warner has been the subject of an Interpol Red Notice, issued at America’s request. While a Red Notice is not itself a binding arrest warrant, most countries treat it as a signal to detain the individual provisionally at airports or border crossings.
There has been no indication that Warner’s notice was ever withdrawn. In practice, if Warner were to travel internationally—especially by air—he would likely be stopped and held pending a US extradition request.
The US has one of the broadest networks of extradition treaties in the world. Even in countries where there is no treaty, governments often cooperate by detaining or deporting individuals wanted on high-profile charges.
That means Warner has very few safe options for international travel. A single change of planes in London, Amsterdam, or Toronto could end in his arrest.
The real collapse of the Trinidad case lies in the Attorney General’s reliance on a false certificate under section 8 of the Extradition Act. The state told its courts—including the Privy Council—that Warner was protected by a bespoke arrangement with the US safeguarding his rights.
Years later, it emerged that no such arrangement existed. Senior Counsel has now advised that pressing ahead would be an “abuse of process”, since Warner spent years litigating on the basis of this false assurance.
Adding to Warner’s peril is the fact that both of his sons, Daryan and Daryll, have already pleaded guilty in the US to related charges. Their admissions directly strengthen the American case and demonstrate why prosecutors remain determined to pursue Warner.
The contrast is striking: while his sons admitted wrongdoing and co-operated, Warner has remained in legal limbo for a decade.
If the High Court lifts Warner’s bail, he will no longer have restrictions on his movement inside Trinidad and Tobago. But this “freedom” is paper-thin.
Outside the country, the American indictment and Interpol Red Notice hang over him like a trap. Warner knows that if he travels, he could be detained and extradited from a new jurisdiction.
(Copyright AP Photo/ Themba Hadebe.)
Jack Warner may be about to win in Trinidad, but he has not won against the United States. The charges remain, the Red Notice stands, and his sons’ guilty pleas show how strong the US case is perceived to be.
In reality, Warner’s safest choice may be to stay exactly where he is. His freedom, if granted, would end at Trinidad’s borders.
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Mohan Ramcharan is a Trinidadian living in England, an LLB (Hons) law graduate, systems thinking practitioner, and critical thinker. He is a product of two cultures and strives to be ethical and impartial in his thoughts and actions.
