Today’s post will address extradition and deportation due to Red Notice status, using as examples the case of two fugitives from India who were INTERPOL Red Notice subjects and were arrested in India following their return from the U.S. and Thailand.
One of the men, Janarthanan Sundaram, was allegedly deported from Bangkok to India after being accused of siphoning over ₹87 crore( almost 9 million USD) of investor’s money through a Ponzi scheme. Mr. Sundaram was reportedly denied entry to Bangkok on the basis of a Red Notice. After being deported to India, Mr. Sundaram was detained and handed over to local police.
The other alleged offender, Virendra Mani Patel, was wanted in a case of fraud of ₹77 crore (almost 8 million USD) registered by the Gujarat Police in 2002. INTERPOL issued a Red Notice against him in 2004, a Central Bureau of Investigation(CBI) spokesperson said in a statement.
“On the basis of the Red Notice, Patel was detected at Ahmedabad airport while on arrival from the US on January 29, 2025 and was detained and later handed over to the Gujarat Police team,” they said.
These cases illustrate that Red Notices do not necessarily lead to extradition, but can still have the requesting country’s intended effect of returning the wanted person if the Red Notice leads to deportation (removal) from another country.
Extradition vs. deportation
Extradition and deportation are two different processes, often handled by different branches of government.
Extradition is typically handled by the criminal court officials, although it may be a civil proceeding, and is typically conducted pursuant to the terms of an extradition treaty. When extradited due to the charges that precipiated a Red Notice, the sending country returns an individual back to the requesting country to face a trial or sentencing.
Deportation is most often handled by a country’s immigration officials. When an individual is deported, the deportation decision is not necessarily based on an outstanding Red Notice; it could be that the Red Notice brought other immigration matters to light, such as being out of status.
In cases where a person cannot be extradited- whether due to a lack of dual criminality or absence of an extradition treaty- upon seeing an outstanding Red Notice, a country may still choose to deport an individual back to the requesting country.
The circumstances around the case of Mr. Patel are common among Red Notice holders. Many individuals with outstanding Red Notices are unaware of them until they are flagged in interactions with law enforcement such as airports or traffic stops. These interactions can lead to deportation or extradition.
Determining one’s Red Notice status
As the cases above illustrate, traveling as a Red Notice subject can result in significant consequences. If an individual wishes to know whether a Red Notice exists against them, the cautious route is to contact a lawyer or INTERPOL rather than risking travel when unsure of whether they could be detained.
As always, thoughts and comments are welcomed.