Authors

Discussion

The long years of World War I (1914–1918) and the War of Independence (1918–1920) left an indelible mark on many social processes in many former territories of the Russian Empire. Poverty, unemployment, and psychological trauma had already created favorable conditions for criminality and violence during the war, including in the newly proclaimed Republic of Latvia. Criminal offenses were often committed by citizens of various countries, which led to the pressing issue of international cooperation in the investigation of these crimes.

Over time, Latvia's police structures established successful cooperation with neighboring countries. This was influenced by the fact that persons with the citizenship of another state frequently committed criminal acts in Latvia. Consequently, in order to conduct investigations and bring criminals to justice, Latvian police and judicial institutions had to cooperate with the country of which the particular offender was a citizen. This meant that the internal security agencies of Latvia needed to receive consent from the relevant foreign state for the extradition of the suspect to carry out the necessary procedural actions, such as interrogation, trial etc.

The Latvian side extradited criminals who were foreigners for offenses committed abroad based on a treaty or other agreement concluded between the states. This procedure was regulated by the Criminal Procedure Law. While the agreements concluded with other European countries facilitated the investigation process and fostered further inter-state cooperation, Latvian law enforcement agencies often faced various problems. For instance, incoming requests from foreign states were not accompanied by translations into Latvian, foreign authorities delayed the examination of cases, or in some cases, even refused to extradite the requested criminals. Similarly, Latvian law enforcement structures sometimes failed to act in accordance with the concluded inter-state agreements. For example, incomplete (erroneous) extradition requests were sent to foreign authorities, or they were submitted to institutions that were not competent to review such documents.

Overall, previously signed international treaties and conventions simplified international cooperation among the involved states. Conversely, the absence of such documents significantly complicated the work of Latvian law enforcement agencies, hindering crime prevention and often allowing criminals to avoid potential punishment. Therefore, successful mutual cooperation among the security structures of the involved countries not only improved the security situation in the specific state but also throughout Europe and beyond its borders.

The aim of the report is to outline the theoretical and practical aspects (also problems) of criminal investigation, including the extradition of criminals, between Latvia and its foreign partners.