War criminal Faber must undergo his sentence of life imprisonment in Germany. This is written today by Minister Opstelten of Security and Justice to his German colleague Federal Minister Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger and to the Minister of Justice of Bavaria, Ms Merk. A country that refuses a European arrest warrant because someone is a citizen is obliged, according to the European Framework Decision, to declare itself willing to implement the punishment in respect of which the European arrest warrant was issued. The Dutch judgment was submitted to Bavaria together with the letter, so that Germany can implement Faber's prison sentence.

Faber, who was born in the Netherlands, was convicted in the Netherlands on 9 June 1947 to life imprisonment for serious offences he committed during the Second World War. Faber fled to Germany shortly after his conviction. In November 2010, the Public Prosecution Service issued a European arrest warrant in order to bring Faber to the Netherlands and serve his sentence here. The German courts refused his extradition, however, exclusively on the basis of the fact that Faber is a German citizen.

Opstelten observes in his letter that the Framework Decision on the European arrest warrant prescribes that, in the event of a refusal based merely on this ground, the refusing state must declare itself willing to assume the implementation of the punishment. The Munich Public Prosecution Service has already informed the Dutch Ministry of Security and Justice that the Netherlands can submit a request to the German authorities to assume the implementation of the punishment that was imposed on Faber in the Netherlands. Opstelten interprets this as a declaration of the German authorities' of its willingness to implement the judgment in Germany. On this basis, he enclosed the relevant case documents with his letter, so that Germany can implement the term of life imprisonment imposed in the Netherlands.

Opstelten also wrote to the Federal Minister of Justice to emphasise the great importance of the present case and because she also indicated her willingness to bring matters to a satisfactory conclusion in a different case last year.

english.justitie.nl