Cyprus’ Supreme Court on Friday upheld an appeal by the Attorney General, overturning an earlier ruling that had annulled a temporary arrest warrant issued for a man wanted by Russian authorities through an Interpol Red Notice.
The Court found that the wrong legal framework had been applied in the previous proceedings concerning temporary arrest warrants issued in the context of extradition procedures.
The case relates to a temporary arrest warrant issued by the Nicosia District Court in December 2025 following a request by the Russian authorities. According to court documents, the suspect had arrived in Cyprus shortly before the warrant was issued and is wanted in connection with serious offences allegedly committed in Russia in April 2025.
The alleged offences include conspiracy, attempted murder, illegal possession, transportation and use of a firearm, as well as unlawful possession and use of explosive materials.
Insufficient evidence
In earlier proceedings, the Supreme Court, acting on an application filed by the wanted individual, had issued a writ of certiorari annulling the temporary arrest warrant. The Court had previously ruled that insufficient evidence had been placed before the President of the Nicosia District Court to justify the warrant’s issuance.
In that decision, the Court stated there had been “only a simple description of the facts” and that the evidence presented “was not sufficient to demonstrate how the applicant was connected to the offences”.
However, in considering the Attorney General’s appeal, the Supreme Court rejected that approach, ruling that temporary arrest warrants issued before the formal commencement of extradition proceedings do not require the same evidential threshold as ordinary arrest warrants.
EU convention
In its unanimous judgment, the Court said that “the submission of evidential material” is not required for the issuance of this type of temporary arrest warrant, unlike in other procedures. It also held that Article 18 of the Criminal Procedure Law, which sets out the conditions for issuing arrest warrants, did not apply in such cases.
The Court further ruled that the Interpol Red Notice and the information contained in the police affidavit were sufficient grounds for issuing the warrant, as they included “reference to the offences for which extradition was sought, the time and place of commission, a summary description of the facts and identifying details of the requested person”.
The Supreme Court also noted that the provisions of the European Convention on Extradition, which has been ratified by the Republic of Cyprus, take precedence over domestic legislation. It stressed that the Convention’s ratifying law “has superior force over any other domestic legislation”.
The Court ultimately allowed the Attorney General’s appeal and set aside the first-instance ruling.
Source: CNA
