TPF, 16.03.2026, RR.2026.13
Facts
In the context of parallel criminal proceedings conducted in Switzerland and Romania for offenses of human trafficking, pimping, and money laundering, the authorities of both countries established a joint investigation team. Following a request from the Romanian authorities, the Public Prosecutor's Office II of the Canton of Zurich ordered, by a closing decision dated December 23, 2025, the handover of numerous pieces of evidence collected. The accused, A., filed an appeal against this decision with the Appeals Chamber of the Federal Criminal Court. (cf. section "The Appeals Chamber finds that")
The Appeals Chamber invited the appellant to pay an advance on costs of CHF 4,000. The appellant then requested legal aid, which was rejected by an incidental decision due to a lack of sufficient justification. A subsequent request for reconsideration was declared inadmissible. The Court granted the appellant a final deadline of March 9, 2026, to pay the advance on costs, warning him that failure to pay would result in his appeal not being examined on its merits. Upon the expiration of this deadline, the payment had not been made. (cf. section "The Appeals Chamber finds that")
Law
The Appeals Chamber is the competent authority to rule on appeals against closing decisions in matters of international mutual legal assistance rendered by cantonal enforcement authorities (art. 80e para. 1 IMAC). The appeal procedure is governed by the Federal Act on Administrative Procedure (APA), unless otherwise provided by the Federal Act on International Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters (IMAC) (art. 12 para. 1 IMAC and art. 39 para. 2 let. b FTAA). (cf. section "The Appeals Chamber considers that")
Pursuant toart. 63 para. 3 APA, the appellate authority may require the appellant to pay an advance on costs. In accordance with Art. 63 para. 4 APA, if this advance is not paid within the prescribed period and the appellant has been previously warned of this consequence, the authority shall not consider the appeal. Payment is deemed to have been made in due time if it is handed over to Swiss Post or debited from an account in Switzerland no later than the last day of the period (art. 21 para. 3 APA). In the event of inadmissibility, the costs of the proceedings are borne by the unsuccessful party (Art. 63 para. 1 APA). (cf. section "The Appeals Chamber considers that")
Application to the specific case
In this case, the Appeals Chamber exercised its authority to require an advance on costs of CHF 4,000. After the rejection of the appellant's request for legal aid, a final deadline for payment was set for March 9, 2026. The appellant was explicitly informed that failure to meet this deadline would result in the inadmissibility of his appeal. (cf. section "The Appeals Chamber considers that")
The court notes that, despite this warning and the extension of the deadline, the required advance on costs was not paid within the time limit. The conditions for applying Art. 63 para. 4 APA are therefore met. Consequently, the Court cannot examine the appellant's substantive arguments against the handover of evidence to the Romanian authorities and must declare the appeal inadmissible. (cf. section "The Appeals Chamber considers that")
Outcome
The Appeals Chamber does not admit the appeal. The court costs, set at CHF 1,000, are to be borne by appellant A. (cf. Operative part, points 1 and 2)
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