No extradition request from German authorities in relation to Wirecard investigations: Police

SINGAPORE: The Singapore Police Force (SPF) on Friday (Feb 17) said that it has yet to receive any extradition request from German authorities in relation to investigations surrounding the Wirecard case.

“The extradition of persons from Singapore is governed by our Extradition Act,” said SPF in response to media queries. 

“In this case, extradition proceedings can commence only upon a request by the German authorities. They have not submitted any request to-date.”

In its statement, SPF said that it would like to “clarify on erroneous perceptions on Singapore’s handling of the Wirecard investigations”.

“Singapore law enforcement authorities stand firmly with our global counterparts against transnational crime. We have always fully extended our cooperation within the ambit of our laws and international obligations, when working with our partners on transnational crimes,” it said.

SPF added that it has been working with the German authorities on this case since mid-July 2020 and has provided various forms of assistance to advance their investigations, even as SPF continues its own investigations and legal cases in Singapore.

As investigations and legal proceedings are underway, SPF said that it is unable to comment on specific issues relating to the case.

“The Wirecard case spans several entities and transactions, and a range of possible offences. On Singapore’s part, the first criminal prosecutions arising from the Singapore Wirecard-related investigation commenced on Jul 4, 2020, nine days after Wirecard AG announced that it was filing for insolvency,” said the statement.

In mid-July 2020, SPF said it “proactively reached out” to the German authorities with an offer of cooperation.

This was two weeks after the German authorities announced the arrest of former Wirecard CEO Markus Braun and said that they had just commenced investigations into inflated balance sheet total and sales volume by Wirecard. SPF said it contacted German authorities as the matters under investigation in both jurisdictions appeared to be related. 

To date, a total of seven people have already been charged in Singapore, for a range of offences including criminal breach of trust, falsification of accounts and money laundering. 

Trial dates for two of them, R Shanmugaratnam and James Henry O’Sullivan, have already been set for between Jul 31 and Aug 11 this year. 

“Our close cooperation with the German authorities includes the sharing of information on the case with our German counterparts. In line with international practice, such sharing was carried out on a confidential basis, so as not to jeopardise ongoing investigations and criminal legal proceedings in Singapore. 

“Likewise, Singapore’s law enforcement authorities have made every effort on our end to ensure that this confidentiality is preserved, when receiving information shared by the German authorities on a confidential basis, so as not to compromise their ongoing investigations and court cases,” said SPF. 

SPF added that Singapore law does not permit the use of statements recorded by the police in Singapore for foreign court proceedings.  This can only be done within the legal framework governing Mutual Legal Assistance between States.

“While we voluntarily extend our cooperation to our foreign law enforcement counterparts, we need to also respect and abide by the laws in Singapore. All restrictions on the use of shared intelligence and the rationale were clearly communicated and explained to our German counterparts. Nevertheless, we have also been exploring a range of alternatives to the use of our statements in German court proceedings with our German counterparts.”